Blissful curse
by Bitblondetoday
Summary: The note's been dropped again. 2 years after the end of Death Note. No yaoi. MelloxOC
1. Prologue

_I've always been a little different. Even my bed time stories. Most of people had grown up with prince charming and an evil step mom. I had a socially awkward private detective and a killer notebook. _

**January 26th, 2010.**

Mello stared at the screen, weird numb feeling creeping over him.

_No…It can't be._

But the car. He knew that car.

"The identity of a man shot dead is still unknown…"

"Matt." He murmured. "I got you killed."

How could it happen? It wasn't supposed to be this way. Matt was supposed to be safe. Why did they chase after him in the first place? Mello was the one who had Takada. They were supposed to follow _him. _

Matt was supposed to be safe.

_It's all my fault. _He clenched his fist, feeling as if he might cry. Matt was dead. Gone. _Roger would kill me. _

They weren't supposed to chase after Matt. They weren't supposed to fire at him. He was unarmed. He was _fucking _unarmed.

Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck.

He was angry. At Kira. At his men. At himself, mostly.

"I'm sorry." He murmured to the screen before pressing a small button. The picture immediately changed, showing a crystal clear footage of dark haired woman, wrapped in a blanket.

_Kiyomi Takada. _Kira's spoke-person. The woman whose guards killed his best friend just a little while ago. The woman he had kidnapped.

The woman that'll help him solve the Kira case.

Small movement, barely visible. Squinting, he pressed another button under the screen, and the picture zoomed in to her hands. She was holding a crumbled piece of paper.

_This is it. _Mello somehow managed to keep driving, eyes still glued to the screen. With a shaky hand, she pulled up a pen (how the hell did she sneak a pen past him?) and started writing something down.

He had quite a good idea what.

Just to make sure, he pressed another few buttons. This portable TV was the last thing Matt modified for him- he was going to make a damn use out of it.

The screen now showed the different angle- this time he could see what was she writing. He squinted, zooming the picture some more.

_Mihael K._

_E._

_E._

_H._

_L._

He sighed, running fingers through his hair, starting to slowly count down 40 seconds.

He wasn't going to die. But he'll have to make it seem like he did.

_Damn you, Near. _He clenched his fist again. _You were right. Again. _  
>It was Halle Linder who replaced all of the Takada's hidden notebook pieces and instructed Mello to fake a heart attack, but he knew damn well who's idea it originally was. Halle was smart, but the idea of letting anyone die was extremely unappealing to her, and if she was to come up with something, it would include a way for Takada to survive.<p>

It was Near. It couldn't have been anybody else.

_3._

_2._

Mello made a sharp turn, crashing the van into an old church ruins. The impact made him hit his head pretty hard, but he kept silent.

He was dead, after all.

For a few seconds, everything was silent. He was already starting to fear Takada died, when her loud sobs filled the air.

It took him a moment to realize she was on the phone. Still silent, he tuned in.

"Light!" She sobbed, and he had to smirk. This was what he wanted. At least something went right.

"I'm so scared, Light!" She continued breathing heavily, telling Yagami her whereabouts. He almost tuned out again- he wasn't the most patient person- when she hung up the phone and started dialing another number.

"Mikami?" Her voice was different now- she was obviously trying to pull herself together. "I need you to e-mail me as many identities of people to punish as possible."

She hung up then, and for a next ten minutes, everything that could be heard was the sound of pencil on the paper and Takada's weakening sobs.

And then, it stopped.

Takada got up, taking a few steps. Mello wished he could see her, but the screen got damaged in the crash.

He remained silent for over a minute, wondering what could she be doing, when familiar heat reached him.

_Fire. _His heartbeat increased. _She was setting them on fire._

Barely holding back the wave of panic, he force opened the doors, rolling out of the burning van.

He had to get out of here. Now.

There was a whole in the church wall- large enough for him to squeeze through. Wasting no time, he crawled out into the sunlight, breathing out a sigh of relief.

"Mello!"

He squinted. "Linder. Hey."

"Are you alright?" She rushed over to him, worried look in her golden eyes.

"Alive." He smirked. "You here to arrest me?"

"You're officially dead now. Couldn't arrest you even if I wanted." She smiled. "I'm here to pick you up. It wouldn't be good if Light Yagami sees you now, right?"

"Oh, yeah." He stood up. "So, where am I going?"

"To SPK." His expression darkened. "Oh, come on, grow up. He saved you, you know."

"I know." Mello uttered. "That's the problem."

***AN* This is like a prologue or something. The real story starts in the next chapter. Hope you like it, reviews please! Every reviewers/subscriber gets a cookie/chocolate bar/piece of dice/cigarette/cake/killer notebook. Constructive criticism welecomed. Thank you!**


	2. Chapter 1

**-all humans will, without exception, eventually die-**

I sat up abruptly, my breathing heavy. My back were covered in sweat, and I could feel strands of hair sticking onto them. With a sigh, I pulled myself out of the bed and to the window. I needed fresh air. Now.

Window lock made no sound while opening- my adoptive aunt was bit of a perfectionist, and every single thing in the house was working flawlessly. Placing my elbows on the window sill, I pushed my torso out, enjoying the feel of the cool breeze on my burning skin.

My name is Ari Linder- Arianna, actually, but if we go to such details, Linder isn't my real last name either. Seventeen years old, currently inhabiting Japan, originally from United Kingdom, about to finish high school and get the hell away from here.

I am what you could call a double orphan. My family died when I was four years old, and then, three years ago, my adoptive parents died too. After the incident, I was taken in by my adoptive aunt (sister of my adoptive father, in case someone has trouble following) and have been living with her ever since.

In Japan.

I'm lucky all of my guardians believed in lingual education.

Halle Linder, my (adoptive) aunt, is actually really cool. She lets me do whatever I want, had taught me how to use the gun (although I don't have one, so I don't really see the point), and has a damn cool house. She is never home, but well, nobody's perfect.

Suddenly, the window on the other side of the room flipped open. With a tiny jump, I spun around, coming face to face with six foot something mummified creature, staring at me with it's eerie bloodstained eyes.

"Christ, Havoc." I gasped, breathing out a sigh of relief. "You scared me."

Oh, right. Havoc. Did I forget to mention him?

He's my Shinigami.

"Good morning." Coarse voice murmured to my ear. Cracking my eyes open, I smiled up at the creature lurking above me.

"'Morning."

"Did you really forget to turn on your alarm clock again, or are you just taking advantage of me?" Havoc slipped down from the bed and walked over to the window, peering out.

"I'm taking advantage of you, of course." I smiled, burying my face into the pillow. "Fuck, it's so bright."

"I know. I opened the curtains." Havoc did his version of chuckle.

"You sadistic bastard."

With a groan, I sat up, running fingers through tangles in my hair. "What time is it?"

"Half past six." Havoc said, glaring at me. "Time to move."

"Man, you can be a pain when you want to." I stumbled out of bed, towards the bathroom. "Is Halle still in?"

"She didn't come home at all." Havoc floated after me. "Another all-nighter."

"Ah, well." I shrugged, reaching the sink and splashing some cold water on my face. "It's tough, working for L."

So, here's the thing. L is this badass mysterious detective, solving only cases that catch his interest, and all the good stuff. I am not supposed to know my aunt is working for him. I am not supposed to know the original L died eight years ago, and the current one is kid from this institution called 'Wammy's House', going by name Near. But when you have a pet Shinigami, you know an awful bit of stuff you're not supposed to know.

Havoc floated out of the bathroom (and I mean floated. It's really weird, with him...he has both wings and legs, and yet, he uses neither of them), giving me some girl time privacy. I took a fast shower, untangled my hair, pulled on the hideous school uniform, and with a bit of a hesitation, applied some eye liner. I've never been much of a make up girl, but I really liked what eye-liner did to my eyes. I mean, being an only non-Asian girl in the entire school, I might as well point that out.

I have big eyes.

Big, _round _eyes.

I am not Japanese.

So, when I forget to use a suffix, it's not because I am trying to be rude.

I just seriously forgot to use it.

Havoc was waiting for me in the kitchen, chewing on a chocolate bar.

"Fuck, Hav." I shook my head, laughing. "Do you ever stop eating? Halle will think I'm bulimic or something."

Havoc shrugged- well, did something that resembled a shrug, at least. "I was hungry."

"Well, tough." I laughed. "Couldn't you wait for five freaking minutes 'til we reach the store and buy you something?" Feeding a Shinigami can be really expensive.

With another shrug, Havoc floated over to the doors. "You'll go broke. I'm just saving your money."  
>"You're earning me psychological counseling." I hissed.<p>

"It's not like you don't need it."

I contemplated elbowing him, but kicking a Shinigami doesn't really do much. Instead, I pulled out my handsfree and placed it on my ear- when you're the only one who can see the person you're talking to, mobile phone is a very useful device.

"You're being incredibly rude." I noted.

"Well, I _am _a Shinigami."

"Yeah, well, I _am _feeding you, so you could try playing nice, you snickers junkie." I chuckled.

"I don't even like snickers."

"Picky, too."  
>Havoc let out a coarse laugh, flying up. "See you at school. Pitiful human."<p>

I rolled my eyes, taking a sharp turn to the bakery.

Sadistic bastard.

***author's note* Aaand another incredibly short chapter. Hope you like it, all reviewers get cookie/chocolate bar/etc. Love you! **


	3. Chapter 2

**-once dead, they can never come back to life-**

_Shattered. No other word could portray it better._

_She was sitting in the corner of the room, face pressed against her knees, hands wrapped around her torso, as if she needed to physically hold herself together. Besides the two of them, the house was empty, but she still kept the sobs in- it was painfully obvious that, from that day, it won't matter is _he _near or not. He'll always be there. In her head. He had penetrated her mind, permanently carving himself in. _

_Havoc hated him. He started hating him long time ago, but loathing he experienced right now could not be expressed by words. He stared down at the broken figure, unsure what to do next._

Kill him.

_That was the only way._

_It won't save her. It won't ease the pain. But it _will _stop him from hurting her again._

_He had to kill him._

_Sparing no time, he pulled out his death note, opening the first blank page. The movement caught Ari's eye, and she looked up, her eyes bloodstained, tears still running down her face._

"_What-" Her eyes found the notebook, and she gasped, looking up at him in panic. "No!"_

"_I won't let him hurt you again."_

"_But you'll die!" She sat up, her eyes wide in panic. _

"_I won't." He looked at the notebook, avoiding her gaze. He couldn't look at her. Fear at her face. Tears in her eyes. Blood on her jeans. It was too much. It muddled his brain, made it hard to think._

_Hate. Infinite hate._

"_He is not showing any signs of wanting you dead." He managed to hiss. "So it is not prolonging your life in any way."  
>"How can you be sure?" She sobbed, wiping the tears of her face. "Maybe I'm meant to go insane. Maybe I'm meant to commit suicide because of him, and then, if you interfere-"<em>

"_I'll risk it."_

"_You won't!" She shrieked, staring at him. "You will not leave me! Not now, not ever. I need you. Why in the world do you think it'll be any easier without you?"_

_Her breathing grew heavier, and he could see she was on the edge of a panic attack._

"_I need you, Havoc." She uttered. "I…I am weak. I am so weak. And you make me strong. And I need to be strong. I'll always need to be strong. Life doesn't get easier, you know? We just get used to it."_

"_You are not weak."_

"_Look at me!" She shrieked again, stomping the floor. "This is not strong. This is a mess. I am a mess."_

"_You have every right to be a mess." He whispered. "Your life is a mess."_

_She nodded. "That's why I need you."_

"_I can't let him hurt you…"_

"_Then give me the note." _

_He stared at her, and she met her gaze, determination radiating through her eyes._

"_I'll be able to fight him then." She said. "Give it to me. If it comes to that, I'll kill him. Not you."_

"_But-"_

"_I can't have you die." Another wave of tears rolled down her face. "I don't want to be alone."_

"_You won't be." He rose his mummified hand and removed a strand of hair from her face. "I won't leave you."_

_She sobbed, smiling up at him. "Promise?"_

"_Promise."_

It's been five years since the day he made the promise. Five years of her not using the notebook, five years of her holding it all in, five years of him being completely helpless.

He hated it. Hated the fact he couldn't do a damn thing. But he had promised. And he wouldn't break the promise.

She needed some consistency in life.

"Linder." Light nudge in the shoulder. "Linder. Wake up."

With a groan, Ari shook the hand of her shoulder.

"Wake up, saseko." The voice hissed. Suppressing a giggle, she turned to face the tall, skinny guy sitting next to her.

"One of many perks of your teacher not being able to speak English is that you can swear without getting caught." She whispered. "Swearing in Japanese kind of kills the point."

Katsu Miyagi, one of the few people she actually formed a relationship with, smirked.

"Look who's talking. Kaigawa-san will kill you. This is the third time you're taking a nap during her lesson."

"Katsu, honey." I sat up, shoving hair out of my face. "You don't need to use suffixes while speaking English."

"Habit." Katsu shrugged. "Maybe if you used it in English, you wouldn't forget to in Japanese."

She rolled her eyes, eyeing the board. "What are we doing?"

"I'm not sure." Katsu shrugged. "Something with x-es and stuff."

Ari nodded, opening her notebook. "Okay. Let's look like we're paying attention."

Katsu nodded, following her example. "Good idea."

"Oh, and by the way." Opening the last page of the notebook, she quickly scrambled down a message.

_Tan- sho._

He eyed the paper, hardly holding in a laughter.

"You had to, didn't you?" He shook his head, still chuckling.

Shrugging, she turned the blank page. "I like getting even."

"So, seven p.m., right?" Saki Aicho, my second and final friend, smiled as we walked out of the school.

"Yeah." I nodded. "Meet you there."

"You two going somewhere?" Katsu asked, catching up with us.

"Dance practice." I eyed him. "You know. The thing we talk about seventy-five percent of time?"

"Oh, yes. Contemporary ladies." Katsu smiled. "Well, have fun. I don't know how you do it. Do you ever get a night off?"

"Yeah, actually." Saki tilted her head. "Friday, Saturday, Sunday. You of all people should know that."

"Since we spent them with you." I sighed, stretching.

"Lol, no." Saki laughed. "Two us spend them together. You join us every once in a while. When you're not studying or something."

"Well, sorry, you native speakers, but some of us have to work on our Japanese in order to go to the store."

"Well, sorry, but which language are we currently speaking?" Saki rose her eyebrow. "And you don't see us ditching our friends for English lessons."

I smiled at them. "That's because you two are brilliant."

They both frowned.

"_And _you were born in bilingual families."

Saki and Katsu are probably only non-forced human contact I get, except for Linder, nice lady in the bakery, and Havoc- but he's not human, so… The reason might be that they're the only ones who can speak English well enough to lead an actual conversation, or that I'm just weird and can't manage more than two friends.

Probably the latter.

Not that I'm complaining. They're great. And with Havoc constantly lurking around, it's not like I can get lonely.

I'll never be able to trust them with all of my secrets- after Kira incident, who knows how they'd react to me having a killer notebook- but I'm able to tell them everything but that.

And that's more than enough.

***author's note* 'Kay, guys, I'm not getting (m)any reviews on this, so I'd appreciate it if you'd tell me should I continue this story or not. If you don't like it, I'll just focus on Welcome to Wammy's, story over (although I really hope you like it, 'cause I'm like uber-excited to write it and all. But whatever. Your pick ) **

**Oh, yeah. My dear friend google told me 'saseko' means 'whore', and 'tan-sho' 'your 'tool' is small'. I don't know if there's any truth in that, but now you know what it was supposed to tell.**

**Reviews get a cookie and eternal love from my side. Stay amazing! -BBT**


	4. Chapter 3

**-one has to break-**

_Shit, I'm starving._

Chilly night air gently caressed my sweat-covered skin, making me shiver. Wrapping my coat tighter around me- last thing I needed was a cold- I sped up, hardly waiting to get home, where I could make myself a bath and _eat_.

Dance practices can be exhausting.

I've just spent two hours doing the same routine over and over again, and I don't think there was an inch of my body that didn't hurt. Our dance teacher really knew how to push one's limits.

"You looked tired." Without any warning Havoc appeared next to me.

"You think?" I hissed under my breath.

"Grumpy, too."

Rolling my eyes, I dug through my bag, searching for my phone. "So? Did anything interesting today?"

"I paid guys up there a visit."

_Shinigami world. _"Bet they were happy to see you."

Havoc laughed, and I absently noticed how comfortingly familiar eeriness of his laugh has became to me.

"Thrilled. They still have troubles understanding how you handle me."

I shot him a smile- ah, hell, we were all alone in the street, and even if someone was to hear us, it was too dark for him to recognize my face. "Yeah, I have troubles with that too."

"You think you're funny, don't you?"

"I know that." I winked at him. "Hungry? I am."

"Always." He grinned. I knew it was true. Even though Shinigamis don't have a digestive track, and are thus unable to feel hungry, Havoc was constantly craving food. He explained it to me once- it was sort of an addiction ("Like you and your coffee." He had said. "You can live without it, but it would suck.").

"Do you think Halle'll be home?" I asked, keeping my voice relatively low.

"Don't know." Havoc shrugged. "Can check."

"Good idea." I nodded. "See you in a few?"

"Before you say _L do you know." _Havoc grinned at me before flying up. Chuckling, I shook my head. You see, even though he never played any part in the Kira investigation, Havoc was there pretty much the entire time. I found the whole thing horribly interesting, especially since world's number one detective and the notebook of death were involved, so I sent him out to spy on Kira (a.k.a Light Yagami) during the day, letting me in on the info every evening. I probably could've told the police about the stuff I knew, but hey, if this fifteen year old came to you telling you her invisible Shinigami saw some random perfect student killing thousands of people with his magical notebook, would you really believe her?

Not to mention only evidence I had was my own notebook, which would make me a suspect too, and who do you think they'd blame, a traumatized orphan or a straight A student?

So, yeah, I kept quiet the entire time. Even when my aunt joined in the investigation- we've never been very close, and with my background, there was no reason for her to believe in my innocence.

You can't really blame me now, can you? I mean, if Yagami hadn't been caught, I'd do something. Like, kill him. If you are to start using your Death Note, who's better first kill than Kira himself?

My mind blabbering was interrupted by set of steps following my pace. Slowing down a bit, I tried to figure out whether should I panic or not. I mean, I had a piece of Death Note paper on the inner side of my belt (precaution only), so it wasn't like I was defenseless. But still. If someone was to attack me, it's highly unlikely they were going to tell me their names beforehand.

If only Havoc was here…

I tuned in on the steps again- they slowed down with me, too heavy to belong to a woman.

So, a guy. Great. I considered glancing over my shoulder, but it didn't seem like a good idea to let him know I am aware of his presence.

I just need Havoc to come back- which was to happen in a minute or so- and then he'd tell me is the guy dangerous, and if he is, what is his name so I can deal with it.

Biting my lip, I sighed. Who was I kidding? I can't just kill a person. If I had that little conscience, world population would be two people short. And I couldn't let Havoc do it for me, since it would get him killed.

But I could touch him with the Death Note paper, and then Havoc would scare the living shit out of him.

He just needed to get back.

Let's hope the guy's patient.

Or just not a maniac at all.

Just to test my theory, I made a sharp turn to left, increasing my speed. Guy followed me within a moment's hesitation.

Well, fuck.

I just need to-

My thoughts were completely cut off when guy's step turned into a slow run, shortening the distance between us every second. Lump forming in my throat, I kept my composure, hoping he'll just run past me.

He didn't.

"Hey, sweetheart." So, he was a man- about fifty years old, if I was not mistaken, his heavy breathing indicating he wasn't in a very good shape.

Ignoring him, I sped up. _I just need a minute, just a minute, so Havoc can get back- _

"Hey, hey, now." His meaty hand clasped my shoulder. "I don't want to hurt you, y'know? I just want to talk. Is there anything wrong with that?"  
><em>Hell yeah. <em>Failing to shake his hand off, I turned to face him, my best poker face on. "No, of course not."

So, yeah, he was fifty, a bit overweight, grin on his face making me horribly uncomfortable.

"Yes, yes, that's true. You're a smart girl." He grinned harder. "Nice, smart girl."

"Thank you." I forced a smile. "How can I help you?"

"I just want to talk."

"You've already said that." I took a hardly visible step back. He still followed me, getting so close I could feel his hot breath.

"Oh, guess I did. Would you like to join me for a quick chit-chat? I know a great place, just around the corner."

"I'd love to." I assured him. "But I really must go. My dad will get worried- he's a cop, you know." _And he has a gun. Really big gun. And is a really good shooter._

"I don't think five minutes will make much of a difference." He smiled at me.

"My dad's very strict." I took another step back. Of course he followed.

"I'll walk you home afterwards. Explain everything."

"That's a lovely offer." I nodded. "But I really-"

His fist flew to my face, cutting me off. I ducked, chloroform soaked mop hitting wall instead. My heart beat increasing, I glanced at his now raging face for a bare second, and then took off as fast I could.

_Shit shit shit shit shit._

What's the point of having a Shinigami if he's not here to save you from the local rapists?

Man might've been out of shape, but damn, he was fast. He caught up with me in less than a minute, pulling me in one of the blind alleys.

"No!" I screamed, jerking out of his grasp. No use. He held his grip on my shoulders, pulling me close to him. "_No!"_

"Shhh." He whispered, wrapping his arms around me, pressing his lips to my neck. "Don't scream. It'll hurt your lovely voice, and we both know no one can hear you from here."

Still struggling, I shut up. He was right. This part of town was just stores and coffee-shops, always empty during the week nights.

No one could hear me.

Except Havoc.

Empowered by the hope, I struggled harder, screaming on the top of my lungs.

"I wanted to play nice." The man uttered, pressing me against the wall. "But you're leaving me no other option."

"Damn right I'm not." I uttered back, elbowing his stomach with full strength. "Fucking pervert."

He didn't stagger back, but it was obviously he took the blow.

"I thought you were nice."

"Don't trust the first impression." I murmured, stomping on his foot and repeating the elbow kick. His hold of me loosened, and I managed to spin around, landing a fine fist-blow on his face.

He staggered back, arms covering his nose. Without a moment's hesitation, I rushed towards the exit.

"No!" He growled, grabbing a hold on my forearm. Throwing my leg up blindly, I managed to scrape his cheek with bottom of my shoe.

"Bitch!" He screamed, pulling me back. He slammed me against the wall, pressed so close his raging face was barely an inch away.

"Bitch." He murmured again. "Bit feisty, aren't we?"

_Havoc, come on… _"No. No. I'm sorry. Please."

"But not so brave, not anymore, eh?" He rose his hand, caressing my cheek. "What's your name, girl?"

A spark of hope. "Tell me yours first?"

He smiled playfully. "I bet you'd like to know."

I was just about to make a remark, when he spoke up again.

"Shio Izawa."

I blinked, more than a little surprised.

"You're allowed to know it, sweetie." He murmured. "It's not like you'll live to tell."

Suddenly, I felt my breathing increase. I was no longer able to think clearly. I knew I had to do something- knew I could do something- but couldn't remember what. All I knew was, it was going to happen- again- and then I'll die. I'll be one of those girls you've read about on the news, found dead in the alleys.

The heat of his body was too much to handle. We were so close I could hardly breathe. Avoiding his glance, I looked up, my limbs hanging limp.

It's no use. It never was.

I should now probably describe what he did. Most of authors would. But I won't. You can imagine that much for yourselves.

I don't know how long it lasted. I've lost track of the time the minute it began.

What I can tell you is, I got out alive. And I owe it to the person who never was.

I opened my eyes for a second. I don't know why. I just did. And he was there.

_Havoc. _I shut my eyes immediately, too embarrassed to look at him. But then, some rational part of my brain realized what he might try to do, and my just like that, I was fully aware of the world around me.

"_NO!_" I cried, pushing him away with unearthly strength. By that point, he hadn't expected me to fight, so I managed to break free.

"Havoc, don't!"

Shinigami was standing on the entrance of the alley, Death Note in his hands. He looked at me, pain in his eyes.

"I have to."

"No!" The man- Shio, obviously- finally got his senses back, and was now staring at me, looking very confused.

"I- I'll do it."

Havoc blinked. "You won't be able to go to Heaven nor Hell."

"I know!" Shio stared at the thin air where Havoc stood, clearly puzzled.

"There's misfortune following the users-"

"_I know!" _I shrieked. Shio took a step towards me. I backed away momentarily.

"What's wrong, sweetheart?" He asked, taking another step towards me. Backing away blindly, I tripped down. "Not completely clear in the head, are we?"

"Bastard." I spit out to him. My fingers clutched around the piece of paper lying on the floor- it fell down when he undid my belt. "Fucking bastard."

Halle Linder had just returned home, not at all alarmed by the fact Ari was still not there.

Keeping in mind she rarely ever spent the night home, it wasn't very unlikely Ari would go out on the school night. But her grades were flawless, and her teachers had only words of praise for her, and if she decided to party on Thursday night, ah, well, be it. Nobody's perfect, especially not teenagers. If they are, there's a big possibility they are also serial killers.

Personal experience.

If the girl wasn't back by ten, she'd phone her. If that doesn't work…ah, she'll think about it then.

Slipping down on her seat, she cracked her neck, taking in a deep breath. She hadn't slept in 30 hours, and she was ready to head for bed.

She just had to make sure Ari was safely home.

Fucking teenagers.

She was just about to take her shoes off when doors opened with the loud thump.

"Ari?" She called out. Only answer she got was silent sobbing from the main doors.

"Ari?" She stood up, now alarmed. "Is that you? Is everything okay?"

"Y-yeah." Ari managed to gasp out, before starting to cry again. "No!"

"Ari!" Halle rushed to the front doors, shocked by the sight. The girl in front of her was hardly recognizable, her hair messy, eyes red, face tear stained, clothes covered in blood.

"Ari!" She gasped. "What-"

"He- he's-" Ari's entire torso was shaking with sobs. Panic attack. "He's-"

"What? He's what?" Halle slid down next to her, staring at the younger one's face. "Ari, he's what?"

"Dead!" Ari burst out, burying her face into her palms. "I-I killed him! He's dead!"

It took her quite a while to calm down enough to speak. She spoke in short sentences, letting out little detail.

Guy attacked her. She tried to push him away. He fell down. And…now he was dead.

One week later, Kira murders started happening again.

***author's note* Yaay! I got a subscriber! Hello there, you uber-fantastic person! Magimagus, this chapter is for you! Hope you like it!**

'**Kay, enough of the exclamation marks.**

**So, yeah, I felt very inspired to write this scene, so I did…hope you like it, PLEASE review, it means so much to me, you'll get cookies and all.**

**Love you all, stay fantastic! -BBT**


	5. Chapter 4

**-just because you can doesn't mean that you do-**

"Ari."

Groaning, I squinted through my eyelids, blinded by the light.

I forgot to close my curtains again. Typical.

Havoc was floating above me, his face concerned.

"Ari. Wake up."

"I'm awake." Yawning, I sat up, shoving hair out of my face. "What time is it?"

"Half past five."

"Half past-" I stared up at the Shinigami, his expression not changing. "Why the hell did you wake me up?"

"Halle's coming." He replied shortly. "Putting the note away might be a good idea."

"Oh, right." Suddenly very much awake, I ran my hand through bunch of papers on my table, picking up the Death Note and shoving it under my shit. "Thank you."

"Get to bed. She'll get suspicious." With another tired look, Havoc floated over to the corner of the room. "Hurry up. She's almost here."  
>Nodding, I rushed over to my bed, slipping under the covers. I've been- erm- working for most of the night, and I fell asleep at the desk. It felt great to crawl in my bed, and I could've probably taken a nap if it wasn't for the object pressed tight against my chest.<p>

_If she finds out, I'm dead. If she starts suspecting me, I'm dead._

It's like I'm constantly discovering new ways to kill myself.

The doors cracked open, and then closed shortly after.

"She's left. Stay still for a minute, though. She can still hear you."

_I know, damn it. _Biting on my tongue, I closed my eyes, enjoying the few moments of piece.

When your life becomes an act, times when you pretend to be sleeping might as well be the only times you actually get rest.

I waited for five minutes before getting back to my desk.

"You look horrible." Havoc noted.

"Thank you." I hissed under my breath. "What's up with you? Those day's of the month or what?"

With a growl, Havoc started floating over the room (his version of nervous pace). "You know what's wrong."

"No, I actually don't." Pulling the strand of hair behind my air, I hunched over my papers. "Enlighten me, would you?"

I could feel his icy stare on my back. "You're being stupid."

Sigh. "I know."

"If they find the Note, they won't ask question."

"I know, Havoc!"

"Death penalty. Maybe right on the spot. Who knows. Nobody questions L."

"Havoc, shut up." Pressing my eyelids shut, I ran fingers through my hair. "Don't you have somewhere to be?"

Silence. "Guess I do."

I've given him a minute to disappear before burying my face in my palms.

_My life is such a mess._

"It's been going on for days now." Gevanni noted, standing in the corner of the room (the tarot card city Near had recently made had occupied most of the space, and no one wanted to risk knocking it down). "We weren't sure at first, but the pattern is alarmingly similar."

"Interesting." Near murmured, absently twirling his hair.

"It's just like when he first began." Halle added. "Light Yagami, not the cheap Kira."

With a sigh, Near glanced at the monitor. "Fifty criminals in five days? Is he holding back for some reason?"

"Um." Gevanni looked down at the file in his hands. "Perhaps he is busy?"

"Perhaps." Near placed another card on the top of tarot tower he was currently working on. "In that case, the suspect would be a working adult. Or wants us to think so."

Halle stared at the white-haired boy, unsure what to say. She has worked with him for quite a while, but still didn't get used to his lack of expression.

"Still, it is too early to make any conclusions." Near sighed, glaring at his tarot tower. "What did press say about the deaths?"

Gevanni glanced at Halle. "They…um…"

"They say that Kira is back." Halle took over. "Some say he never truly disappeared, just took a short break."

"I see." Near nodded. "I would like to examine the death patterns. Would you mind passing them over to me?"

Gevanni took a step forward and then paused, unsure how to get papers to Near without knocking his towers down.

"Oh, right. My apologies." Standing up, Near maneuvered through his buildings, not even caressing any of them. Shrugging, Gevanni handed him over the file.

"Thank you." Near walked back to his sitting place. "Now, could you leave me and miss Linder alone for a moment?"

"Yes, of course." With a nod, Gevanni left the room.

"Miss Linder."

"Yes, Near?"

His eyes focused, Near turned to glance at her. "Tell me about your niece."

"The hell?" Sitting up, I glared at the Shinigami across the room. "Already? I knew this was going to happen, but damn it, he had just laid his hands on the information!"

Shrugging, Havoc threw an empty chocolate paper in a trash bin. "Told you you'd get killed."

Squinting, I threw my back against the pillows. "You are enjoying this way too much."

So, here's the thing. For obvious reasons, I've asked Havoc to keep an eye on the SPK. He had assured me they have just opened the investigation today- and I was already one of their top suspects.

Oh, who am I kidding. I was their only suspect.

"This would be funny, if it wasn't so tragic." Havoc noted, already on his fifth chocolate bar. If I wasn't too stressed over the whole Kira thing, I'd probably scowl him or something.

"Fuck." I murmured, wrapping my arms around me.

"Problems?"

"Yeah." I shot a glare at Havoc. "I'll need your help. Forget the SPK. Trace the other Shinigami."

"Yes, master." Havoc bowed mockingly before casually floating through the wall.

_Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck._

Bet this hadn't happened to Light Yagami.

Ah, the unexpected irony.

So, here's the thing.

I know how this looks like. I know that Havoc is right- if they ever find my notebook, no one will believe I am not Kira.

And I am not. I really am not.

I know it doesn't seem that way. I am a traumatized teenager, with a notebook that can kill people- who knows, maybe I have a god complex too. If Light Yagami, the perfect kid, could've been Kira, there's no reason for them to believe I am not.

And I am not. I really am not.

And, I am repeating myself.

Well, once they kill me and the murders continue, they'll guess they had the wrong person, but that won't make much of a difference to me then, eh?

"Fuck."

There _was _a chance, though. A chance that had me awake for two days already, working my ass off.

I had to find the real Kira.

And I had to do it fast.

***author's note* All reviewers get a cookie/Shinigami/chapter(?). Hope you like it. REVIEW! Please And stay fantastic, love you all! -BBT**


	6. Chapter 5

**-Monsters are real- **

Nate River's eyes fluttered open as he sat up, turning his head to the side to ease the soreness in his neck.

"We hadn't equipped the entire room upstairs so you could sleep on the floor." Voice noted from behind his back.

"Linder." Near nodded, picking up a dice and adding it to the tower he was building before he fell asleep. "I apologize. Guess I overestimated the power of caffeine."

"Caffeine has nothing to do with it." Halle walked over to him, handing him over a thick file. "You haven't slept in three days. I understand you hold no regards over your body, but if you keep on like this, your intelligence will suffer too."

"I'll keep that on my mind, thank you." Near replied, focusing on the information before him.

Linder lingered on the doorway, glaring at the young detective. He was soon to turn 21, yet he hardly looked 13. His white hair was messy, and his oversized white pajama hung off him, making him look even more unhealthily skinny than he was. Also, all the sleepless nights had taken their toll, leaving black bags under his eyes that strongly contrasted with his pale skin.

Halle Linder could hardly be called a motherly type. She hated children- they were noisy, clinging, and almost everything she couldn't tolerate. But when she saw Near, looking barely old enough to use public transportation on his own, so fragile and exhausted, her motherly instincts would take over.

_Get yourself together. _She scowled herself, taking in a deep breath. _He is old enough to take care of himself. _

"Linder?" Near called.

"Huh?" She asked, rising her head.

"How is your niece doing?"

Halle immediately stiffened. "Alright. There's been no change in her behavior."

"And you would know that how exactly?" Near asked, flipping a page of the file. "I don't recall you ever being away from work for more than two days."

Halle's fist clenched, but she managed to calm herself down. At moments like this, only Near's childish appearance kept her from loosing it. "I do admit I wasn't exactly the best parent-figure, but I believe I would've noticed if my niece was turning Kira."

"I hadn't said anything." Near still didn't bother to meet her gaze. "But with past like hers, her going insane would've taken place a lot earlier."

"I would also notice her being Kira." Halle replied stiffly.

"Can you guarantee me that?" Near asked. "You are one hundred percent certain she could never kill? You believe you know her well enough to tell if she carries any permanent mental damage?"

Halle took a deep breath. "I-"

Near finally turned around. "Yes?"

"If she was Kira, my brother would be the first to die." Halle said. "He was the one who ruined her chances of having a normal family. So, yes, I am one hundred percent certain she is not Kira."

"But if your bother was dead…"

"Then there would be a big possibility she was responsible." Halle said. "But he is not."

"At the moment."

"If she was the new Kira, he would be her first victim." She stated. "Now, either present me some actual evidence or widen your range of suspects."

And with those words, Halle stormed out.

"My aunt is such a badass." I noted as Havoc finished his report.

"Yeah." Havoc agreed. "Who'd tell she knows you that well."

Shooting him a warning glare, I looked down on my notebook. "Has L widened his range of suspects?"

Havoc shrugged. "I don't know."

"Wow, that's really helpful."

"Don't be so stingy. I have spied over the little brat for the entire day. He flew through the file and then started building a dice tower." Havoc sighed. "Can I get some food?"

"Sure. The fridge's full."

"Wow, that's really helpful." Havoc grinned before floating through the doors.

_You could've just went down through the floor. _I thought, staring down at my finished math homework. If my grades lowered now, I'd be marked as Kira for sure.

What do I know about the new L?

_He's young. _I drew a small line in the edge of my notebook. Drabbling always helped me think. He also likes dice.

_Perhaps it helps him think. _I drew four even lines and paused. _He wouldn't be the only one. _

It wasn't very promising information. If he was going to keep making things out of dice and saying little to his co-workers, having an invisible spy won't help much. And right now, I needed all the help I could get.

Well, fuck.

Havoc floated back to my room, chewing on a chocolate bar. "So, what are we doing now?"

"I don't know." I dropped my head on the desk. "I'm going to die."

"No, you're not." Havoc said with a stern voice. "Should I continue searching for the other shinigami?"

"Please." I nodded. Havoc had spent the entire night trying to track down the owner of the dropped Death Note, but since rest of the Shinigami realm wasn't too keen on him, no one wanted to answer his questions.

"Good luck." I murmured to him.

Havoc smiled at me- to most of the people, it would probably seem creepy, but I have learned to see nothing but pure niceness in his smile.

"Get some rest. You'll be needing it." He murmured before floating out the window.

I woke up, scream frozen on my lips. Sitting up quickly, I looked around the room. Windows closed. No Havoc. Except for me, room completely empty.

Still, even after I've made sure my doors were locked, the fear lingered. I knew I was being irrational- _he _was locked away for good- but after nightmare like this, I just had to make sure.

I couldn't have it happen again.

I didn't use to lock the doors. While living with Halle's brother- Daniel- and his wife Amy, I was not allowed to.

"_What if the lock gets stuck? We'd have to knock the doors down, and you'd have even less privacy." _Amy used to joke. _"Why would you need to lock the doors at all? We all knock before entering."_

She never understood. She couldn't comprehend why all of the sudden I wanted to lock my room at night, why I wanted to lock the bathroom doors. When I think back at it, how I wanted her to know, how I wanted her to find out and _do something_... I feel guilty.

And I shouldn't. It's not my fault. It's him. It's always been him.

Daniel Linder. My adoptive father. Man who took me out of the orphanage, who used to tell me bed-time stories, tuck me in and give me a good night kiss.

But then…I grew older. Good night kisses weren't just a peck anymore. Amy never understood why I started being so awkward around him all of the sudden. I remember thinking how, if she'd find out, it would kill her.

And then it did. Kill her.

I don't know why I fought that night. I gave up the struggle long ago. For a long time after Amy's death, I blamed myself. If I had just kept quiet, just like I did every other time, she'd still be alive.

But then, how do I know? How do I know what would he do?

Amy caught Daniel doing it to me. She wasn't brilliant, but she wasn't dull either. She guessed it wasn't the first time. She threatened to call the cops. She said we're leaving. She called him a pervert. She called him everything that he was. He got mad. She got hurt.

She died.

Fortunately, she managed to call the police before he got to her. They came within five minutes- quite fast, but not fast enough. Daniel was arrested. He was charged for family violence and murder. Not rape. No matter how hard Havoc tried to talk me into telling on him, I couldn't. He got life sentence either way.

"Ari?"

Jumping up a little, I spun around to face Havoc. "Y-you scared me."

Havoc's brow furrowed. "Are you okay?"

"Y-yeah." I nodded, shooting him my best convincing smile. "Found out anything?"

He nodded slowly.

"You don't seem too pleased about it." I narrowed my head. "What's wrong?"

"I found Kira." He murmured.

"You-" My eyes widened. "You found Kira? That's- that's fantastic!"

Havoc looked up, sublime sadness in his eyes. "Don't be so thrilled. You won't like what you're about to hear."

***AN* Guys, I'm so sorry for not updating anything for so long, but school was really crazy and I couldn't find time to write. I'm on a spring break now, but I still have to study A LOT so I won't be writing as much as I would like to. I'll post more of WTW soon, but I was in a mood for this story today, so, yeah, hope you like it.**

**ALSO, it's my birthday tomorrow, so please be nice and review :) **

**Love you all, - BBT**


	7. Chapter 6

***A/N* Before you do anything, remember that if you kill me now, there'll be no more chapters EVER. I know I haven't updated anything in ages, but school's been really crazy, IT'S NOT MY FAULT O:) **

**Anyways, I hope you enjoy the chapter, BIG thanks to Reki Amasist, Lost_soul195, WeirdGothGirl and everyone who subscribed/reviewed this story. I love you so much :D**

With a soundless scream, I opened my eyes, only to find myself staring up to a bleached ceiling. My head hurt- and by 'hurt', I don't mean, 'aw I've got a headache maybe I should take a nap', I mean _hurt. _As if in, someone knocked the wall down using it. Even opening my eyes was an agony.

Pushing back a wave of pain, I tried to figure out where I am. White walls. Overpowering smell of antiseptics in the air. Silent but constant beeping somewhere near me.

Aw fuck. _I'm in a hospital. _

"Ari?" Familiar voice whispered. I opened my eyes to answer, when awkwardly long hand pressed against my mouth.

"Don't speak. You're being watched."

_Oh. _Transforming my attempt to talk into a yawn, I subtly nodded.

"You've got hit in the head pretty hard." Havoc started explaining. _Well, that makes sense. _"Do you remember what happened_? _Blink if yes, yawn if no.

I faked another yawn, feeling panic creep into my poor, confused, beaten up brain. There's been a lot of things going on, a lot of _very _important things, and memory loss was something that could really fuck me up.

_Panic attack is not going to help. _I reminded myself.

"I thought so." Havoc sighed. "Do you remember the name of the person that owns the death note?"

Mentally, I gasped. No, I _did _not. I could remember Havoc telling me he knows. I could remember him telling me I am not going to like it. But everything after that…

"I'm guessing that's a no."

"I don't remember anything." I breathed out.

"Doctor said you probably won't remember anything that happened yesterday." Havoc said. "It might come back with time. _Might."_

_What happened yesterday? _Panic on my face must've been pretty obvious, since Havoc flew over me and grabbed my hand.

"I am now going to tell you everything you are allowed to know." My eyebrows rose in surprise- what the fuck does he mean _allowed?_- and Havoc quickly scolded me. "Calm your face down."

_Sorry. _I mentally grimaced, pulling on my obliviously-asleep facial expression.

"You found out who Kira is, and the person didn't seem to like that. In response, the person has beaten the living shit out of you and, assuming you're dead, dumped you in this tiny blind-end street. However, not a second after the person left, here comes this blonde metrosexual guy in tight leather on a bike, picks you up and takes you to the private clinic- where we are now, in case you're wondering.

So, you're taken in immediately, and soon after, your aunt and rest of SPK team appear, together with, watch it, L. N. Whatever. Also, leather guy is Mello- the guy who died in original Kira investigation, remember? Just he didn't really die. He faked his death or something. Anyways, they have installed cameras in your room, and are waiting for you to wake up so they can question you while you're still under drugs."

It was becoming harder and harder to keep my poker face on with every new information. _L is here? Mello is here? Linder is here? Who the fuck is 'the person'?_

Moaning, I rolled over to my stomach, pressing my face against the pillow. "Who is Kira?"

"I can't tell."

"_You can't-" _

"Someone will be coming to the room to make sure you don't die from lack of oxygen."

"So better do some fast explaining!"

With a quick sigh, Havoc started talking. "I can't tell. Kira's got some help from Shinigami realm, and I've been forbidden to tell you."

"Bullshit. You're constantly breaking the rules, what is different this time?"

"I just can't-"

"I am going to die, Havoc!"

"You'll die if I tell you too!" Havoc finally blurted. Comeback froze on my lips.

"What?"

"Shinigami that dropped Kira's note. He is watching me. If I tell you, he'll write your name down."

"_Oh."_ I gulped. "And if I guess?"

"Then too, probably."  
>"And he'll be trying to set me up?"<p>

"Yeah, I believe so."

_Fuck. _"Well, this should be fun."

Mello kept his gaze locked on the wall in front of him, refusing to acknowledge white haired boy solving a puzzle on the floor few feet away. Halle was sitting in a chair between the two of them, and he found it fascinating how, even though her (adoptive) niece was lying unconscious in the hospital bed, she still thought of making sure there was something between him and the sheep. Near had allowed the rest of his team to leave, assuring them that, with help from Mello and Linder, he'll be perfectly able to deal with this situation.

_With my help. _Mello thought bitterly, absently chewing on the inside of his cheek. How did this happen? While he knew he won't be able to just watch Kira case re-open without intruding, he never expected himself to actually be working with his childhood rival.

"I do not understand." Near had said when Mello protested few hours ago. "We are both trying to achieve the same goal. Joining strengths would be more logical than the two of us working separately. It didn't work out too well the last time." He hated to admit it, but Near had a point. After all, if Mello hadn't refused to work with him at the first place, Matt could've still been alive.

_Matt. _He felt the stinging sensation in his lungs, just like every time he thought of his dead best friend. No matter how hard he tried to justify his actions, Matt's death was completely his fault. He wasn't about to let anyone else suffer for his stubbornness.

Doors opened, and tall, good-looking brunette in mid-forties walked in, dressed in long, flawlessly white doctor coat.

"She is awake." She said, glancing at Near.

"Thank you, doctor Robins." Near nodded and stood up, pulling on a grotesque looking plastic mask. "Does Mello care to join me?"

Wordlessly, Mello got up and walked after him, and Linder followed their example immediately. Guess she still wasn't over the entire 'gun-to-a-head' incident.

"Hey." Doctor Robbins stopped him as he walked past her, handing him over a blank paper mask. "You might need this."

"Thank you, I'm good." Mello murmured, pointing to his motorbike helmet resting on the table next to the doors. "But I appreciate your concern."

Girl looked much better than the last time he saw her. She was still pale, and her hair was a bit ruffled, but at least there wasn't blood sticking it to her forehead. Her big, deep blue eyes widened as they walked in, and she immediately sat up, taking in a deep breath.

"Halle." She breathed out, and within a second, Halle pushed them out of the way, pulling her into a comforting hug. Near coughed, and Linder pulled away, shooting the pale girl a comforting look.

"Arianna-" Near started.

"It's miss Linder." She corrected him, and Mello blinked in the surprise. Near did look barely thirteen and horribly powerless, but still, he _was _L. People usually didn't talk back to world's greatest detectives.

"My apologies." Near continued in his usual monotone. "Miss Linder, I understand you might be confused."

"No shit, Fluff." Arianna raised her eyebrow, and Mello had to sustain a chuckle.

"Bad attitude will not help."

"I just woke up in a hospital having no idea where I am, there's a midget in my room wearing a creepy as hell mask, followed by an armed guy dressed like a fucking prostitute, and only person I know is my aunt who is following orders from the already mentioned midget. So sorry, but proper behavior is not really my number one concern."

"Miss-"

"Don't you 'miss' me. What's up with your face, anyways? I've watched The Orphanage, you know. Don't make me trap you at the tide." She threw a quick glance at Mello. "And what's up with the Leather-Pants there? Have your faces gotten damaged at the same explosion? Are you, like, noseless or something?"

Mello raised an eyebrow, not sure whether he should be pissed or amused.

"It has to be pretty bad, when you find that mask an improvement." She finally stated, smirking at Near.

"You've been heavily injured, and you've been brought here for your personal benefit." Near said, unfazed by Arianna's monologue. "I am wearing a mask for safety purposes."

"So did the kid from The Orphanage." She shrugged.

"You are a suspect in the Kira investigation." Near decided to ignore her, together with every social principle. "I am wearing a mask for obvious reasons."

"Oh." She nodded. "I…am Kira?"

"We have reasons to believe so."

"Mind to share them with me?"

"Ari." Halle murmured.

"I just want to know what makes you think I am Kira." Girl insisted.

"We have our reasons." Near repeated. She shot him a look before quickly looking away.

"Lovely."

"We have no reason to believe anything you say from now on is truth." He said. "But still, I will ask: What is the last thing you remember?"

"I…" She furrowed her brow, absently biting her lip. "I was in my room. Doing homework." When she looked back up, her eyes seemed panicked. "It was Thursday."

"It's been only two days." Halle whispered. Mello had to smirk- he never thought he'd see her being so…mother Hen-ish.

"What happened?" Ari looked at her, ignoring the two of them.

"You've been attacked." Near said.

"Does your know-it-all white-haired ass care to tell me by who?" She snapped at him.

"We are not certain yet."

"Oh, we are not certain."

"Yes."

Mello rolled his eyes, happy to have helmet hiding his face.

"We believe it might be someone related to Kira."

"Wait a bit, aren't I Kira?" She blinked mockingly.

"There is a possibility you are not, and in that case, I do not wish to be responsible if something happens to you." He ignored her sarcasm. "And that is why we decided to fake your death."

***REVIEW! Please?***


	8. Chapter 7

***Author's note* ZOMG a chapter. I am so sorry for not updating anything in so long, but it was the end of the school year, and then I just slept for days, and then I was at the seaside for a month (I feel like a snob right now) and then I got back and did some pretty stupid stuff BUT NOW I'M BACK YAY.**

**Hope you like it, _please please please _review, it makes me write faster. And enormous thanks to all you who reviewed and asked for more and pointed out my bad grammar (I am not a native speaker, so it really needs to be done, I won't take it personally or anything), I love you all! Hope you like it, and, well, enjoy! (I hope) -BBT**

Halle slid back onto her chair, absently playing with her gun holder. "The nurse said she will be ready to leave by tomorrow."

"Very well." Near noted, not taking his eyes off the domino tower already his height. "The transportation should arrive by nine."

"Thank you." Halle nodded just as another of Near's monkeys walked in. I shifted in my seat uncomfortably- picture of the tall blonde guy pointing the gun at my head in a very unfriendly manner was still fresh to me (can you point a gun at someone in a friendly manner, though? Should definitely check).

"I will leave you now." Near announced, starting to pile his dominos back into the box. Once he was done, the suited guy picked up the box and followed him out of the clinic.

"You can go too." Halle spoke up not a moment later. I glanced towards her, raising an eyebrow.

"I don't really have anywhere to be." I shrugged. "But if you want me to…"  
>"No, stay." Halle interrupted me. "If you want, I mean. I don't mind."<p>

"'Kay, then." I shuffled in my chair, trying to find a more comfortable position.

"Want some coffee?"

"Sure."

"Good. Get me a black one, two sugars."

I eyed her, suppressing a chuckle. "Cheeky."

"That's how I am."

"It must be some sort of family heritage." I got up, walking over to the coffee machine. It took her a moment to answer.

"Oh, you mean Ari."  
>"No shit."<p>

"Don't be rude." _Someone said mother hen? _"And she's adopted, actually."

"Oh." I pressed a few buttons and waited for the dark liquid to fill the tiny plastic cup. "Didn't know that."

"Well yeah, we didn't talk in a while."

"But I knew about your brother."

"That was in the news. You just heard my name and phoned me to hear all the juicy stuff."

I frowned. "Aw, that's kinda harsh."

"That's how I am."

"So is Ari. Sure you're not related?" I picked up the cups and carried them back to her. "No drunken nights, long time ago? No children dumped in foster homes?"

Halle rolled her eyes, taking her coffee. "Ari is British. And she doesn't really look a lot like me."

"Maybe she got it from her hot British father."

Halle opened her mouth for a comeback, but then her face widened into a smirk. "Did you just call my niece _hot_?"

It took me a moment to think of this one. "Aren't all Brits hot?"

"So, you do find her hot. That's nice to know." She got up. "I'm just going to the _loo."_

"Yes, very sexy vocabulary indeed." I grinned, feeling somewhat awkward.

"Oh, and by the way." She glanced over her shoulder. "Near is British too."

I woke up extra early that morning, maybe because of the open curtains, or maybe because of the fucking mummified giant that decided he felt _bored._

Raising a Shinigami is so hard sometimes.

And don't even attempt to go all 'he met you when you were kid'. I am the one doing all the raising here, alright.

So after I explained as good as I could without being visible that I can't entertain him, he continued sulking outside the window, and I took a very welcomed shower. By the time Halle had knocked on my door offering me coffee, I was all dressed up and ready (for about an hour or so).

"Thanks." I smiled, accepting the warm cup. "Nurses wouldn't allow me to have any."

"Well, it's not like you had much time to miss it, being drugged 24/7."

"Don't remind me." I laughed. "Hospitals suck."

"Indeed they do." Halle nodded. "So don't ever, ever get yourself nearly killed again."

"Can't promise anything." I took a sip, almost moaning in pleasure as the taste spread over my tongue. I really, really like coffee. Any. Even the smell. It's really weird. But not a problem. Just weird. "I mean, I'm going to stay with that white creature, he seems to like the life on the edge."

Halle chuckled. "You should really stop calling him that."

"Oh, okay."

"Not only 'white creature'. All the names."

"Oh come on." I whined. "Am I really supposed to call him 'L'?"

"Yes. Now shut up and drink your coffee."

I obeyed her, more because I wanted coffee than anything. Last night, she came in to reveal the shocking truth about the fluffy dwarf that has previously entered my room- I think I did a pretty good shocked face- and explained that they will be taking me to their headquarters, which are more like a hotel than the working space, and that I will have everything necessary for my pleasurable living in there. The fact I still wasn't dead made me believe they hadn't found the note yet, which was odd, since they must've used packing my belongings as an excuse to search every inch of my room.

"They'll be here any moment now." Halle said, getting up. "Hurry up with that. I'll be waiting them outside."

I gulped down the rest of the cup, brushed my teeth and sat back on my bed, trying to pull on my slightly-nervous-yet-innocent face. It was weird, me having to act, since I really wasn't Kira, but hey. My best friend was a god of death. Nothing in my life was like it was supposed to be.

"Ready?" Havoc asked, floating at my side. I subtly shrugged.

"I wanted to tell you something this morning, but you were rude so I decided to let you boil for a bit longer." I turned to face him, little surprised. "I have your notebook. You're still the owner, I'm just keeping it- yes, you can do that, don't interrupt- and I hid some pieces in your clothes after they examined it, just in case."

I forced my jaw back up. I was mad at him for not telling, but he also saved my ass, which meant I didn't have the right to be mad.

"Thanks." I mouthed, absently rushing a hand through my hair.

"My pleasure." Havoc mocked a bow, and then froze as the doors opened.

Halle stuck her head in. "Your ride is here."

Mello frowned, staring at the entrance of the clinic. This morning (four a.m. _is _morning) he phoned Near, asking about the methods of Ari's transport.

"We have a car, darkened windows." Near's monotone replied.

"And what, she'll walk out of it like a fucking movie star, with sunglasses or some shit? I'm sure no one will glare." He spit out, a little frustrated. Near knew better than this. It all smelled like some sort of his mind game, and Mello had the feeling he was playing just as the 'fluff' wanted him to.

"I suppose you wouldn't have any other suggestions?"

Now he openly swore. "Alright. I'll take her."

"I do not recall proposing something of that kind."

"Don't feed me that bullshit. I don't know why, but you wanted me to drive her."

"If you wish, I suppose that plan has its' qualities."

"Yeah, _suppose _so."

"Very well, then. We will be expecting you."

And then he hung up. Mello almost flung his phone at the wall, but that didn't seem like a very good idea.

By the morning, (actual, human morning) he decided Near knew driving her on a motorcycle, face shielded by the helmet, was the best way to transport her, but for some reason, sick amusement or likewise, he made up this sorry excuse for a plan to force Mello to volunteer.

It did seem like something Near would do.

So here he was, waiting for the perhaps-Kira and Linder to show up. Finally, the doors flung open, and Halle signalled for him to come closer.

"I expected a car." She noted as he drove into the clinic.

"Change of plans." He shrugged. "Near sends his regards."

He pushed a small car-key in her hand. "Blue, flashy, you'll spot it easily."

"And you're driving Ari."

"I am."  
>"Near agreed to this?"<p>

"You can call and check, if you want."

She did call.

"Alright, you didn't lie."

"No shit."

"I'll get her."

They returned in a minute, Ari looking much healthier now she was clean, properly dressed, and off drugs. Her black curls were pulled back in a pony tail, her face had some colour, and she was actually pretty short.

"Let me guess, jazz?" He asked, handing over her helmet. She rose an eyebrow.

"What?"

"You're a dancer, right?"

She smirked. "Contemporary."

Halle glanced at him. "How-"

"Probably my height and legs." She answered instead of him. "Am I right?"

"So you know the deduction game." He grinned. Ari nodded.

"She has the build of a dancer." He explained to Halle.

"And you know that exactly how…"

"My- um- really good friend dated a dancer once, long time ago."

"Well, good job." She pulled on a helmet, climbed up the motorcycle and wrapped her arms around his torso.

"Crash us and I'll hunt you down in hell." He heard her murmur. He had to laugh.

"I'll try." He promised. "Just hold on tight."

And without a second glance at Halle, he drove down the road.


	9. Chapter 8

Well, wow.

I've never lived in a flat, nor even a small house, and the last few schools I've attended were quite huge, and I've never had any problems finding my way. But as Mello stopped his bike in front of the giant, blinding white building, I had a feeling it was about to change.

"It's big, I know." Mello noted.

"You don't say." I breathed out. "I'll get lost somewhere in there and _die_."

"Don't worry, Near has cameras installed in every corner of that building. Someone'll find you."

It took me a second to remember that I am not supposed to know who Near is. "Near?"

"Oh, that's the name your fluffy host shares with his co-workers." He explained. "You can address him by it. It might bother him enough to react."

"Well, it sounds more like a name than L." I shrugged. "Are we getting in or off?"

"In." He said. "Hold on."

The doors to the garage opened, and he quickly parked his bike (over two parking spots- just for the fun of it), waiting for Arianna to get off before he did it himself.

She took off her helmet and smiled at him. "This was fun."

"You never rode on a bike before?" He asked, almost taking off his helmet too before he remembered it might not be such a good idea.

"Nah. Halle wouldn't let me." She shrugged.

"You didn't seem scared at all. Most of people freak out the first time."

"I'm Kira. I'm fearless." She rose her chin, grinning. "No, I was freaking out. I'm just good at hiding it, that's all."

"Your acting skill won't make anyone believe your innocence." He noted, leading the way.

"You're right. Maybe I should fake a panic attack up there."

"Yeah, it'd probably work." He agreed. They reached the elevator, and he let her in first, the doors closing before he could press the button.

"Near is controlling the elevator?" Ari asked, glancing up at him.

"He controls everything." He shrugged.

"Not too happy with him?"

"We go way back."

"Maybe once you are less convinced I am a mass murderer you can tell me more about it?"

"If we're both still alive, sure."

The elevator suddenly stopped, and the doors slid open.

"After you, miss Linder." He said, mocking a small bow.

"Thank you, mister…" She glanced up at him.

"Can't really tell, obviously."

"If L-Near has a fake name, you should get one too."

He grinned. "Mello."

"Thank you." She smiled, walking out of the elevator. "Is it like official or have you just made it up right now?"

"Official, very official."

They walked out in a blindingly- surprise, surprise- _white _hall, with three oak doors and a modern looking staircase. One of the doors opened, and one of Near's men appeared.

"Miss Linder." He nodded to Arianna. "Mello?"

"Aw, don't just blow his cover like that." She pouted. Mello snickered.

"Come in." The guy- Gevanni?- shifted so they could pass. "I am agent Decker."

"Your fake name is much cooler." Arianna whispered to him as she walked towards the guy. Mello sighed. He would be really sorry if she turned out to be Kira.

The room I walked in was huge, white, giant monitors covering the walls. Near was sitting in the middle of a lego empire, patiently adding block after block. I paused at the entrance, waiting for him to make some sort of movement.

"Hello, miss Linder." He finally stated, not looking up.

"Hello." I repeated cheerily. "You must really like that mask."

"Did you find your ride enjoyable?"

Alright then. I can play like that too. "You must really like white."

"Agent Decker will show you your room now."

"'Kay. Agent Decker?"

The guy, who didn't even get to close the doors, allowed me to walk out. "Follow me."

Mello could hardly stop himself from laughing as he listened to the short conversation.

That's it. There's no way Yagami was this awesome.

"You're driving him insane." He noted as Arianna walked out.

"Maybe that's my plan." She winked at him. "By the way, he's way more mellow than you are."

"He's not human."

"Ah, you know him longer."

Mello grinned. "I chose Mello because of the irony. I'm definitely not mellow."

"Oh." She considered it. "Nice."

"Thank you, miss Linder."

"You need to stop that."

"Is Kira better?"

"Go ahead, and I'm calling you Gay Porn."

He had to laugh. "Alright, Arianna, then? First name bases? I'm flattered."

"Ari." She corrected him. "And you better be."

Gevanni led them up the set of stairs, to the whitened mahogany doors.

"We'll be leaving you now." He said, cracking them open. "There's a phone on the night-stall, call if you need anything."

"Thank you." She shot him a smile. "Oh, and how many cameras are in there? I want to see if I can find them all."

He glanced at her, and then walked away. "Mister, if you wish me to show you your room, please keep up."

"Bitchy." Ari mouthed.

"I'll see you later." Mello bowed, rushing after the man. "And presumably 20-25."

It turned out they weren't going to let me enter my room just like that. To get to it, I had to pass the hallway, in which I was welcomed by an uniformed female.

"I am agent Adams. I will check you for any suspicious objects." She stated. "Please take your shirt off and empty your pockets."

After a thorough search for any notebook pieces- luckily, I had none- I was allowed to put my clothes back on and proceed to the room. Alone.

The room turned to be really pretty, and really big- which was to be expected, keeping the size of the building in mind. The walls were of a light blue shade, fluffy white carpet covering the entire floor (awhmagod, I'm walking on Near), and single window was looking over the entire town, revealing we are some fifteen stories high.

"Cool." I breathed.

"Cool, indeed." Familiar voice said, and I almost screamed of happiness when I caught Havoc's shape floating out of the closet. All those unfamiliar faces were starting to make me nervous.

"There are 27 cameras in here, that lying bastard." He noted. "None in bathroom, which is really nice of them."

_I have a personal bathroom? Sweet._

"The doors are over there. Not really easily spottable." He pointed to a corner. The doors were sleek, shiny, the same shade as the wall. I rushed over to them and peeked inside- a tiny bathroom, but probably the only place where I'll be able to get some privacy.

I rushed in and closed the doors behind me, sliding down to the floor and placing my head between my knees.

Deep breaths. Deep breaths.

When I felt calm enough to face the cameras, I flushed the toilet, washed my hands and face, and walked back to the room.

In the next few hours, I searched every corner of it- trying out everything in it: the enormous, very comfy bed, a modern looking desk equipped with my school books and a nice laptop (no internet connection- to be expected, but still a bummer), giant wardrobe filled with all my clothes, and a book shelf filled with books, even some I did not previously own. I also had a pretty neat plasma TV facing my bed- yeah, as long as I don't get prosecuted for being Kira, this could be rather enjoyable.

I found all twenty seven cameras- when I was done, I waved to the one on the ceiling, mouthing the number. Then I threw myself on the bed and started to think.

Well, if Havoc was telling the truth- and I had no reason to believe otherwise- the Kira and his loyal Shinigami (there were like five Shinigami's that actually cared about 'their' humans in three thousand years, of course I had to run into one) were going to try to set me up, which meant that the murders were probably going to stop happening for a while. With that in mind…

I was fucked.

***Author's note* Review please? I'll get you a Shinigami. Once. **


	10. Chapter 9

Mello growled and rolled over to his side, pressing a palm against the fancy looking alarm clock his room was equipped with. Swearing to himself, he rolled out of bed, thinking how getting up early seemed like a much better idea yesterday.

To everyone else, the room would look like a proof of Near's extreme generosity, but Mello knew better. White walls, white carpet, no pictures whatsoever- it was a bigger, fancier version of Near's room at Wammy's (he was there a couple of times. Nothing special. Completely legal). It was a bit tormenting, really. Getting out of there as soon as possible started to seem like an excellent idea.

Mello took a quick shower in a nice (and very white) bathroom, pulled on one of his many pairs of leather pants, a first shirt he got his hands on (black, but not leather- his burn made him reluctant to show any more skin than necessary) and almost walked out before remembering that the could-be-Kira might be out there. He was just about to pull his helmet on when he realised eating with it on might be challenging, and he was starving, and how he hot it was with it on. But dying didn't seem like an enjoyable experience either, so he pulled the helmet on and left the room.

Last night, right after Gevanni had left him at his room, the small built-in phone rang and Near's monotone pointed him to the map of the building at his desk, slipping in a request to join him at the fourteenth floor after breakfast.

Besides his faithful bunch of superagents, Near also had a good amount of employees taking care of cleaning, cooking, and any Near's whim. If he wanted to, he could probably order some breakfast to bed, but Halle had warned him not to take advantage of the staff, and he wasn't too eager to get on her wrong side. So instead, he took the elevator ride down to the sixth floor, stepping out into a very clean, nice looking coffee-shop-like room. Knowing little Linder didn't have access to this floor, he took off his helmet, shaking the bangs out of his eyes.

Gevanni and his tall, blonde co-worker were sitting at one of the tables, sipping coffee out of tall mugs. The blonde guy- Rester? Mello couldn't remember- gave him a dirty look. Enjoying the attention, he walked over to the cash-register, where a middle-aged brunette asked to see his card- he showed her the small silver piece of plastic that came with the map- and then proceeded to serve him at his wish. After he consumed two giant plates of chocolate covered pancakes, he decided he feels ready to face Near. Waving goodbye to the kind brunette, he walked into the elevator, pressed the _16 _button, and put the helmet back on.

Fourteenth floor turned out to be Nears giant playing room, with a couple dozen screens hanging from the walls. Slightly annoyed, he took his helmet off again, eyeing his childhood nemesis warily.

"Good morning." Near's monotone came from one of the card forts. Sighing, Mello took a cautious step forward. This wasn't Wammy's. If he knocked over something Near built here, he was very likely to get shot.

"'Sup, sheep?"

"Mello's childish commentary makes me nostalgic." Near's voice remained unfazed.

"What's the plan, almighty L?" Mello dropped his helmet on the floor, joining it a moment later. This might take long.

"I was informed that you were forming a bond with our suspect." Mello rose an eyebrow. "If that is true, I suggest you try to gain her trust by showing her your face."

"What, little Near is out of his guinea pigs?" Mello asked, trying to sound…well, mellow. "Is this why you asked for my assistance in the first place?"

"Mello is being foolish. If I truly required a test subject, I'd have used one of much less intelligent inhabitants of this building." Near paused. "But Halle and her niece are not very close, and I have reasons to believe you might have a higher chance of succeeding."

"Mind to share those reasons with me?"

"Mello has not been reluctant to use his charisma on a female in order to obtain information before," Came the reply. "I do not see why this would be different."

"You want me to _flirt_?" That explained a lot. "I'm sure you have many fine man washing your underwear somewhere in the basement."

It actually took a while for Near to answer. "As Arianna's liking of you appeared before she has seen your face, it is only logical to assume that physical appearance does not play a great part in forming her opinion." He had a good point there. "Which means your scar should not cause any trouble, if that was your concern."

Mello's jaw actually dropped. Near, the socially crippled _Near, _just burned him.

Which was pretty ironical, considering his scar- _oh hell. _

"I'm out." He exclaimed, getting up and walking back into the elevator.

"Do you agree to help, then?"

"Bye, Near."

I actually slept in that morning- which probably had something to do with not being able to sleep until three a.m., but hey. As I finally wake up, around ten a.m., I found a small note at my night stand (guess cameras weren't enough, now they are parading inside my room while I'm asleep), wishing me good morning and telling me I am not to leave the room until told so, and that I can order food by dialling this number (_216)_. I wasn't particularly hungry, so I just ordered a cup of coffee and went to take a shower. By the time I was done and dressed, there was a tray lying on my (made- that was really nice of them) bed, containing one extra-large cup filled with the best smelling coffee there can be, and a bowl of my favourite cereal, with another note: _You must eat. Love, aunt H. _

Which was pretty cute, actually, that even the Kira suspect got love and all.

Quickly after tasting the first spoonful of cereals, I realised I am _starving, _so I quickly ate the entire bowl, ordering some buttered toast and yoghurt, blissfully sipping my coffee- it tasted fantastic, too- and actually enjoying myself.

I can get a morning off. I'm not _actually_ Kira.

I was finishing my fifth piece of toast (I am a dancer! I consume a lot! Don't give me that look!) when the phone rang, and familiar monotone asked me to join them for lunch in three hours.

"Sure, hun." I said cheerily, swallowing a bite.

"Som-"

"No, no, let me:" I cleared my throat and did my best copy of Near's voice. "Someone will be there to accompany you. I would appreciate if you hold back from killing any of my agents. Thank you."

There was a short silence. "That was very amusing. It is a pity you took liking of such illegal activities, I expect you would be quite a success in an entertainment industry."

And then he hung up.

I would've been insulted, if I wasn't boasting with pleasure of making L snap back.

So, what does a not-actually-dead dead person do with their life (when not having lunch with famous detectives)? I decided to do some exercises- being dead is not an excuse for losing stamina, my dance teacher would probably say. After an hour of stretching- three days of hospital made me horribly stiff - I went through some of my favourite routines, thinking about what must be going through the head of the person keeping an eye on me.

Forty five minutes before the lunch I decided I should take another shower, and then spent another five minutes wandering what I should wear. I finally decided I do not care, and pulled on my regular jeans and t-shirt instead. I did braid my hair, though- mostly because it was still wet, but hey- and if that's not formal, I don't know what is.

Five minutes before three p.m., somebody knocked on my doors. It took me a moment to recognise the person.

"Mello." I gasped, once I recognized the leather pants. "Why…what-"

"Is my face that bad?" He asked, chuckling.

"No- no." I looked up, face blank. "What is going on?"

"I decided you might as well see my face." He shrugged. "I mean, you wouldn't be dumb enough to kill me right after I showed you my face, right?"

"Yeah, I guess I wouldn't," I said. "_if I was Kira._"

"Okay, sorry, you're right, if you were Kira." He grinned. "Ready?"

"Sure." I nodded, following him out.

Mello's face was quite nice, actually, ignoring the few years old burn covering half of his face. He had angelic features, perfectly symmetrical, straight blonde hair tied back in a pony tail, and bright turquoise eyes. In some other universe, I would have thought of him as hot. But here, where everyone was looking for evidence that I am a murdered, _no one_ was hot.

The lunch took place on the tenth floor, in a classy looking meeting room. Halle, 'Decker', and some other blonde guy were already there, standing around the table. It took me a moment to spot Near, sitting at his chair at the head of the table, that creepy mask on his face. Instead of a plate, he had a pile of dice.

"Hey there, L." I grinned at him. He nodded back at me.

"Miss Linder. Mello."

We both took our seats, both of the men glaring at us in a rather unfriendly manner. Halle shot me a small smile, which I returned as well as I could.

"Miss Linder." Near spoke up, not looking at me. "I do not wish to ruin your appetite, but I must inform you of some news you might find troubling."

"Shoot." Somehow I managed to make voice sound careless.

"You have been unable to use the notebook for three and a half days now." He started, glaring at his creation. I put all of my efforts into keeping my face blank. I knew what was coming.

"There have been no new Kira victims." He glanced up at me, and even though I couldn't see his eyes, I froze at spot. "Very inconvenient, I'd say."

***AN* I feel like this could (_should_) be much, much better, but I consumed less than 400 hundred calories today and I'm starving and I'm not really capable of doing any better right now. Please please please review. I might die here. I literally squeezed those words out of my weakened body. Pity, anyone?**

**Alsooo, I switched my spell-check to UK English! How exciting! **

**Someone please review this or I might just crawl into my room and not appear online ever again, I'm having serious self-esteem issues and someone needs to show interest in my story. PITY ME. Be a nice fandom.**

**Sorry for randomness, hope you enjoy. I LOVE YOU. Even though you don't review. 3 -BBT**


	11. Chapter 10

I left the doors open- what difference did it make, I had no privacy either way- and rushed over to my bathroom, slamming the doors behind me, eyeing the brand new camera placed in the corner, positioned so it would watch over the doors and the sink, leaving the shower and the toilet blind spots. Not even bothering to undress I walked into shower, turning the water on and sliding to the floor.

_Fuck. _

As the hot water drummed against the back of my head and shoulders I curled up in a ball, breathing fast and shallow. Almost involuntary, my thoughts went back to the lunch.

"_But three days are an extremely short period." Near didn't even bother to look at me as he went on with the conversation. The rest of the room made up for him, though. "You will remain under a constant watch until we have the material evidence."_

Or the notebook, in the language of the mere mortals.

And then, a grandpa figure looking guy walked in, bringing lunch. I knew Near was socially crippled, but still, this was too much.

I forced down a plate of soup before excusing myself, and 'Decker' and his blonde pal accompanied me to my room, none of us saying a word. I wasn't exactly in my cheeriest mood.

So now, here I was. Breaking down in the shower, the only private place I had. And will have, until the day Near decides he has enough evidence to execute me, and proceeds to do so.

_Fuck, fuck, fuck._

Completely loosing the sense of time, I let out a shaky cry, which was soon followed by a complete and quite loud mental breakdown. If someone was listening, he could probably hear me despite the water.

I have no idea how long it was before Havoc appeared, but the water became freezing, so it must've been a while.

"Hey." He hovered over me awkwardly. He never got too comfortable with these situations-there were, like, four of them in my lifetime.

"Hi." I sniffed, taking in a deep breath. I cried all the tears I had, and now proceeded to numbly stare in front of me.

"What happened?"

"Shit." I smirked. "Loads of shit. But that is what my life is made of. I should've gotten used to it by now."

Havoc glared at me, looking as concerned as a Shinigami could. Guess I looked a bit insane.

"Near decided I was Kira." I explained. "He has no evidence yet, but he is not going to search for more suspects. Not that I expected it, but still." I shrugged. "Stress, building up. This was bound to happen. I am not Light Yagami." I gulped. "And I am _not _Kira. And this is all-"

I started to hyperventilate again, and had to bite into my sleeve to calm down.

"This is not fair." I finally let out before burying my face into my knees. "Why is this happening?"

"It's all my fault." Havoc murmured.

"Oh, shut up." I growled.

He ignored me. "If I haven't told you who Kira is, this wouldn't have happened."

"I was already a suspect. It would've happened sooner or later." I rolled my eyes. "Self-hate shit won't help."

There were a few moments of silence. "Do you want me to kill L?"

I looked up, not entirely shocked. "_No. _We've been through this already. You won't be killing anyone for me."

He didn't reply.

"Havoc!"

"Alright."

"You promised." I reminded him. Quilt flashed in his eyes.

"I won't." He uttered. "I promise."

Suddenly very tired, I pushed the wet hair out of my face. "What time is it?"

"It'll be ten p.m. in a few minutes."

_Wow. _"Oh." I considered going out, but knew I wasn't ready yet. "Um. Is Kira's Shinigami here?"

Havoc looked confused. "Oh, right. You don't remember."

"I don't remember what?" I growled to my knees.

"You touched the other notebook. You'll be able to see him when he appears."

I looked up, taken aback. "I can see him?

"I just said th-"

"Don't go all smart on me. I can really see him? What's he like?"

"He's an ugly flying thing that is not me. How many notebooks have you touched recently?" Havoc rolled his eyes. "Just try to control your expression when he shows up."

"'Kay." I nodded. "Anything else you forgot to mention?"

Havoc floated away. "No. I think."

"You're not amusing." I reminded him, standing up and peeling my soaked clothes off. Five minutes later, I was wrapped up in a soft white bathrobe, my hair dry and combed. I almost looked like my old self, despite the puffy red eyes and dry, bitten lips.

_Is this the face of Kira? _I stared at my reflection. _Is this the face of a cold-blooded murdered? Tell me, Near, did Light Yagami ever, in all those years, look like this? _ With another deep breath, I left the bathroom.

Someone- probably Halle- sent me tea some time ago, since it was already cold. I felt almost guilty flushing it away. Then I went back to the shower- I was growing both keen on and sick of it at the same time- to change into black briefs and oversized white shirt I usually slept in, and picking a book from the shelf, crawled back into the bed. I had no idea who chose the books to equip the room with, but s/he had a sense of irony. Only three books out of them all had nothing to do with murder or psychopaths.

I had no particular need for sleep- I did bunch of tuning in and out of it in the shower- but I didn't have much else to do, so I turned the lights off and spent two hours aimlessly staring at the ceiling. Finally, I gave up, and started pacing around the room, wondering if ordering food in the middle of the night would be considered rude (and do I even care). Then I grew sick of it so I spent some five minutes turning the lights off and on, finding some little pleasure in making Near's bills as high as possible (I knew L was filthy rich. But still. No one could enjoy wasting money on spoiled seventeen year old possibly-Kira brats). I was just about to return to Patrick Suskind's _Perfume_ (I always wanted to read that book, but never got the chance) when the phone rang.

"Get dressed and come out." The whisper said.

"Not to be rude or anything, but this is how most of the horror movies start."

Chuckle. "Shut up and do it."

"Who's that?"

"Who do you think?"

"Jigsaw?"

"Are you guys having a serial killer comfort-group meeting?"

"Why yes, every other week. I've got Freddy Kruger here, want to talk?"

"He was my childhood hero."

"Have you burnt yourself on purpose?"

Mello laughed. "So you recognised me."

"You are the only person talking to me in this entire building." I noted.

"Fine then, come out before we wake up whoever Near set to guard you."

I bit my lip. "How smart is this?"

"Near's okay with me taking you out of your room. However, if we get caught, he'll do a great deal of scolding and probably have me watched too."

"So, as stupid as it can be."

"Yeah." I could almost see him grin. "Coming?"

"You bet. Give me a minute."

Jumping out of my bed, I pulled on the first pants I could find- my newly purchased black sweats- and some socks, and walked out. Mello was waiting for me in the hall, dressed in all black, his leather pants being replaced with sweats almost identical to mine (a bit odd, but hey).

"Follow me." He whispered, grabbing my forearm. He led me up the stairs ("We can't use the elevator, we'll wake everyone up") until we were both covered in sweat and out of breath.

"Are we there yet?" I asked, panting.

"Suck it up, dancer." He grinned. "Thought you'd have a bit more stamina than this."

"We are-" I glanced up at the number on the wall. "Ten floor higher than we started!"

"I don't see what you're trying to say." Mello panted, grinning. "Just two more, I promise."

It turned up to be five floors more, but I said nothing. It was worth it.

The last floor was just another hallway, but then Mello pulled out a small silver key ("I did a bit of pick-pocketing in my days." He explained) and unlocked the great silver doors. We walked out onto the giant balcony, and I gasped as the cold wind started slapping my face, carrying my hair everywhere.

"Fresh air works wonders, and you were locked indoors for twenty-four hours now." He shrugged when I looked at him, smiling broadly. "We're not all robots."

"What's with you and the entire Near-hate thing?" I asked, walking over to the edge- there was a fence, panic not- and looking down- we were so high, the city looked like a blur of shiny lights.

"It's private." He followed me. I nodded.

Fresh air really did work wonders. After just a minute, I felt immensely better, even though it was a bit cold and my hair was everywhere. Standing up on my tiptoes, I spread my arms and grinned broadly, throwing my head back. Somewhere near me, Mello laughed.

"Hey, Rose." A hand landed on my shoulder. I glanced up at Mello's face, his blonde hair creating a halo. "I have an idea."

"I can barely hear you." I yelled back.

"Sit!" He ordered, doing likewise. Once we were down, the sound of wind was almost gone, and I leaned back onto the fence. Mello sat next to me, laughing.

"Your hair," He grinned. "is everywhere."

"Why, thank you." I did my best to fix it. "Yours looks lovely too."

He smoothed it back with his hand. "Still looks better than yours."

"I had a friend, back in Australia." I said. "She had an identical haircut."

Mello rolled his eyes. "You're just jealous."

"Probably." I sighed. "So, what's the idea you had?"

"We are both stuck here for the time being," He started, conveniently leaving out the fact he'll probably walk out of here alive. "So why not get to know each other?"

"Isn't that too risky?" I asked.

"My middle name is risky." He grinned.

"Now, that's just plain stupid." I said. "What do you know, maybe I can kill with just a face and a middle name."

He chuckled, and then suddenly went serious. He glared at me with such intensity I had to look back.

"Are you Kira?"

"It's highly unlikely Kira would confess." I replied, doing my best not too look away.

"Just answer."

It took me a moment. "No."  
>"Okay then." He looked away.<p>

"And you believe me?"

He glanced back at me. "I don't necessarily have to."

"What was the point of this, then?"

He shrugged. "Kill me if I know."

I stared down at my hands and let out a small laugh. "Odd thing to tell a Kira suspect."

"Maybe I'm a bait." He said.

"Maybe." I nodded.

"Ever played 21 question?" He suddenly asked.

"No, actually not."

"You know the rules?"

"I know everything." I grinned.

"Except for my name."

"You wish."

He smirked. "Alright. In the mood for it?"

"Sure." I nodded. "Me first. Are you wired?"

He let out a surprised laugh. "Okay, lets get these ones answered first. I am not wired. This is not for the case- I couldn't sleep, and I saw you couldn't either, so here we go."

"'Kay." I nodded. "I'll just have to trust you."

"I'm sorry." He shrugged. "Okay. Start now."  
>I bit my lip, thinking. "Alright. How did you get that scar?"<p>

He self consciously touched his face. "An accident."

"Shocking." I narrowed my head. I was obviously hitting a painful spot, but I couldn't stop myself. "I just figured you pushed your head into the open fire for the fun of it."

He actually laughed. "I was working on the first Kira case- not using entirely legal ways- and this happened." He gestured to his face. "It goes down my hand and chest. Not very pretty."

"It's not bad." I said. "Honestly. Makes you look tough."

He rolled his eyes. "Your turn. Do you know your real parents?"

I was taken aback a bit. We just started, when did it get so personal? "Yeah. I mean, I remember them." I paused. "Your parents. How were they?"

"I have no idea." He said. "I'm an orphan too."

"Oh." I looked down. "Your turn."

"How were _your _parents?"

"Is it just me or do we keep hitting under the belt?" I asked, still looking down.

"We are." He replied. "Want to stop?"

"No, no." I shook my head. "My mom…she was weak. Very weak. Not physically, okay, that too, but…" I took in a deep breath. "She was just…very afraid.

And my…_father_," I forced the word out. "He was a real dick. Sexist. Didn't want me. Mom kept me hidden in the basement." He looked at me in surprise. "I'm not supposed to know. I heard the nuns in the orphanage I was left in talk about it few days before I was adopted."

Mello nodded. "Your turn."

"The thing that upset you the most." I said, trying to get the ball back onto his side of the field. He took in a deep breath.

"I had this friend." He said. "He's dead now. It wasn't nice." He looked away now too. "The worst thing that has ever happened to you?"

The answer paused in my throat. No. I couldn't. I couldn't tell him that. Not yet. I blinked the tears (where did they come from?) away. "Being held a suspect for a crime I never committed."

Mello nodded.

"What was that friend's name?" I asked, looking up. There were tears in his eyes. It took me aback a bit.

"Matt." He smiled. "It wasn't his real name. But I can't give you the real thing. I was the only one who knew it. Besides Roger and Quillish."

"Roger and-?" I started, but he interrupted me.

"My turn. What do you feel about Halle?"

I looked at him, surprised. "She's nice. Very nice. And good to me."

"But you don't love her." He looked down at me, his glare intense.

"She is the best parent I've ever had." I said firmly.

"But you don't love her?"

I glared at him, suddenly very, very angry. "I think it's time to end this game. Now."

"Fine." He replied, his eyes cold. "I'll take you to your room."

"Smart. I could kill Near on his sleep, unattended." I snapped.

"He doesn't sleep."

"Better not risk it, still."

We were both silent for the rest of the walk. I seriously had no idea what just happened. This was the legitimately the weirdest conversation of my life. Very roller-coaster like. It wasn't really clear to me why did we both get so upset all of the sudden- but touching so many vulnerable spots with practically strangers, it was bound to happen.

It probably was for the case. No one would reveal so much about himself to a Kira suspect without a very good motive.

We finally reached my room, and Mello placed his hand on my shoulder.

"Halle loves you." He said. I stared up at him, now seriously offended.

"And you know that _how _exactly?" I snapped back.

"The way she is around you. She's very-"

"Protective, yeah. Worried. Nervous. That is not love." My voice was too loud, but I couldn't force myself to care. "She took me in because I had nowhere else to go. She hates this whole guardian thing. She hates to admit, but she'd be glad if I'd disappear. Not love. Quilt."

"What does she have to be guilty about?"

"Nothing." I said, opening the doors. "But she still feels that way."

"And you know that how?" He crossed his arms against his chest.

"I have a nose for guilt. Near, for example, feels very guilty. You too. Matt, right? Was it your fault?"

He looked at me at surprise.

"You're a bit of a bitch, aren't you?"

I slammed the doors at his face, not even bothering to reply.

***A/N* I legitimately have no idea what just happened either. Hope you like it, though. Review either way, and tell me why did you like/hate it, so I can improve and become a bamf writer. (it also makes me write faster, so do it do it do it!) **

**Big thanks to everyone who reviewed/favourited/put it under story alert, you are amazing! -BBT**


	12. Chapter 11

I dreamt of school that night. That's a bit depressing, knowing your life sucks so bad that you miss going to school, but hey. My life _is _pretty depressing. Nothing special happened, in the dream; I just walked around different classes and hung out with Katsu and Saki. I suppose I missed them quite a bit. They were the only human friends I had.

The dream was so real that, when I woke up, I half expected to find myself in my old bedroom, with Havoc telling me I'll be late (again) if I don't get up _now_. Upon realising that the room I am in is much bigger and much more foreign than the one in Halle's house, I lost all the will to get up and simply rolled over to my side, falling asleep again.

The next time I woke up, it was five p.m., and I still had no special wish to get out of bed. So I just pulled the covers over my head to isolate the sunlight (I suppose I could've closed the lids, but that would request getting up) and, yeah, fell asleep again. If I had any motivation, I'd be worried. Sleeping too much was a sign of depression (and so was a lack of motivation, now that I think about it). By the time I came back into consciousness, it was dark outside, and one glance at the fancy alarm clock told me it's almost four a.m. My only instinct was to go back to sleep (what a variety!) and even though I was certain I wouldn't be able to, after less than a minute, I succeeded.

I was just in the process of leaving the science classroom when loud ringing noise startled me. I looked around, and just like that, I was in an enormous bed, and the phone was ringing like crazy.

"Hello?" I answered grumpily, not bothering to stifle a yawn.

"It's ten a.m. Get up and be ready in half an hour." Mello voice was firm. "It's an order."

"Is it from Near?" I asked.

"No?"

"Then I do not care." I hung up, slamming my head back against the pillows. Near was L- Mello, no matter how intelligent, had no authority over me.

Phone rang again, but I just pressed a pillow over my head and ignored it. But after the entire ringing length went on for the fifth time, I had to answer.

"Mello-"

"This is L." The monotone interrupted me. "Get up and be ready in half an hour. It is an order."

Then he hung up, and I stared at the phone for an entire minute, sincerely shocked.

They were teaming up on me. Not only in the whole find evidence thing, they were actually joined in a mission of tormenting me while I'm still alive.

Cursing to myself about creepy dwarfs and metrosexuals, I went through my usual morning routine, finally pulling on a pair of black jeans and a loose t-shirt, letting my still wet hair to hang freely down my back. I was just pushing my feet into a pair of worn out sneakers when someone knocked on the doors.

"Good morning, sunshine." Mello grinned at me, pushing his way into my room. "Yours is bigger."

"I'm sure you get to say that a lot."

"Ooh, that was low." He laughed. "The canteen should be empty, want to get something to eat?"

"I can order anything I want up here." I said, frowning.

"Yes, but that's not nearly as fun!" Mello beamed. "Let's go."

I gave in, following him into the elevator, where he cheerily hummed to some unfamiliar melody while I pouted in the corner.  
>"You are some kind of mood sadist, I swear." I noted as we left the elevator. "Finding pleasure in other people feeling like shit."<p>

"C-c-c." He shook his head. "That is no way for a lady to speak."

We walked into the canteen, a room the size of mine, just with tables and food. He pointed me towards the coffee machine ("You like coffee, right?") and then proceeded to get us breakfast ("Just pick a table, my treat. I'll show you what food is."). I got myself a big mocha latte with extra sugar and then took a seat at the table in the back of the room, near the window. It looked like Mello might take a while, so I took my cup and walked to the window, pressing my face against the smooth glass and glaring down. We were much closer to the ground here (I could actually see the roads) and I realised I quite missed it, even the horrible busy streets and grey of the skyscrapers.

"Enjoying the view?" Mello's voice startled me, and I actually spilled some coffee over my hands. It was a common thing with me, but it still stung. Cursing, I took my seat, wiping the hot liquid off and glaring at the tray.

"You like chocolate, eh?" I noted. The tray contained a dozen of those mega-chocolate cupcakes (you know, made of chocolate biscuit, chocolate chipped, and filled with chocolate cream, also known as _herehaveyourdiabetes _in some parts of the world), an enormous plate of European pancakes (you know, the big, thin ones, not those tiny fat cakey stuff you Americans make) folded in triangles, a small bowl of strawberries and two cups of hot black tea (with milk and honey on the side).

"And you like the rest?" He grinned. "I asked Halle."

"You and Halle hang out a lot?" I asked, helping myself to some pancakes. They were my favourite, with lemon juice and sugar- Halle really went into details. "Am I going to call you 'uncle' soon?"

He had just bitten in one of the muffins, and now he was choking on it, his face red (well, at least it wasn't purple. That would be a reason for concern). Able to breathe once again, he shot me a disdainful look.

"Is this really breakfast talk?"

I shrugged apologetically, mouth filled with food. We didn't talk much- or at all- for the rest of the meal, completely focused on devouring the entire tray. I was aware that my eating manner wasn't the most lady-like, but the speed at which Mello consumed those cupcakes made me feel much better, and it was my first meal in almost two days, so hey. It took us ten minutes to lick clean the plates, and then Mello handed me over the tea mug, adding sugar into his.

"Use milk." I told him, doing so myself.

"I was about to!" He said, grinning. "Dear Lord, Woman."

I laughed. "Catholic?" When he looked up, I nodded towards the crucifix hanging onto his neck as an explanation.

"Yeah." He replied. "You?"

I bit my lip. "Don't throw rocks at me."

"Sugar, as long as you are not Kira, my sins largely overcome yours." He laughed.

"Even if they didn't, you'd still have to be a complete saint to judge me, wouldn't you?" I asked, and he grinned broadly.

"So you know Bible. Christian parents?"

"Mom was. Adoptive one. Took me to the service for a couple of times."

"So, what went wrong?" He took a sip of his tea and made a face. "This is disgusting."

"Probably because it has no chocolate in it." I smirked. "And, well, stuff. I believe in stuff. Just…not…it's complicated."

"Not judging you!" He mused. "No, but seriously, this tea sucks."

I took a big sip and waited for the taste to settle. "Okay, you're right. Lets get out of here."

We took our trays to the friendly looking brunette and then walked out, me still holding my coffee cup in a protective grasp.

"So, what now?" I asked.

"If you're not too sleepy," He smirked. "Want to go up again? It's really pretty in the daytime."

"Sure." I smiled and, knowing it's probably a very stupid idea, added. "We've never finished our game."

But Mello just nodded. "You're right. I'll start this time."

By the time we've reached the rooftop, Mello knew my favourite band (Our Lady Peace- "Odd choice for a jazz dancer." "Don't go there."), candy (Pancakes. And lemon cakes.) and book (_The boy who could see demons_, Carolyn Jess-Cooke), and I managed to find out he cuts his own hair, his favourite pattern is straps (I was short of questions, don't judge) and that he eats mainly chocolate but remains fit by spending two hours min in the gym on the daily bases.

"How do you manage here?" I asked as we walked out of the elevator.

"Oh, you don't know." He pulled out the key out of his impossibly tight pants (not that I was looking). "There's a gym here."

That got me interested, and he promised to take me there once ("If you don't fall asleep." "Just _let it go._"), and then we were out in the fresh air and for a moment I just inhaled it, enjoying the cold wind in my face and still a bit wet hair.

We settled ourselves near the fence again, and slowly started to creep away from the safe topics.

"What is the one thing you wish you could know about your past?" He asked, and I bit my lip, thinking.

"I'd like to know what happened to my brother." I said finally.

"You had a brother?"

"Few years older than me, yeah." I sipped my coffee. "Have no idea what happened to him. _Or _dad. But I don't really care about him, though." I gave it a bit of thought. "Although it would be nice to know, is he in jail or what. Maybe Kira killed him. I'll never know."

"Can't you use google?" Mello suggested. "I mean, if you remember your brother and dad, I suppose you know their names too."

I nodded. "I did search them. Nothing." I sighed. "You?"

"Me?"

"What is the one thing you wish you could know about your past?"

Mello frowned. "How was my family like. I mean, I did a bit of a background check, and they seemed like nice people, but still…" He glanced down at me. "It'd be nice to have a first hand experience."

I raised my half-empty cup in a toast. "Orphan kid problems!"  
>He laughed. "Orphan kid problems."<p>

I drank the rest of my coffee and now glanced down at the empty cup, waiting for the next question.

"What is your sincere opinion on Kira?"

"Am I supposed to believe this is not for the case?" I eyed him.

"Am I supposed to believe you are not Kira?"

"Fair enough." I cracked my neck. "He…I see what he's doing. But as a person that has some experience with criminals, I could never stand by him."

He seemed surprised. "Why not?"

I looked down at the cup, knowing there is no way this comes out right. "Death…death is too merciful."

He nodded. "I agree."

Still not looking up, I took in a long breath. "Why do you blame yourself for Matt's death?"

There was a period of silence. I carefully glanced up. He wasn't looking at me- his lips were a thin line, eyes cold.

"Get up." He said suddenly. "I'm showing you the gym."

***A/N* Yaay a chapter! Hope you like it, review? Prettyprettypleasee? ;3**

**Btw, Croatia is a freaking haunted country. They should film a Supernatural episode here, there is plenty of material. My friend and I checked two houses out this week (in broad daylight- chickeeeens) and it would definitely make a good set! (this was very relevant)**


	13. Chapter 12

Mello grinned at Ari's stunned facial expression, leaning back a bit.

"Like it, eh?"

Her eyes still taking in the sight, she nodded. "Could say so."

He chuckled. "This is Near's way of making up for taking his team's private lives away."

"With a gym?" She rolled her eyes. "Fair enough."

"There's also a spa few stories down."

This managed to capture her full attention again, and she looked at him, eyes wide. "You're kidding."

"No."

"He actually has a spa."

"Private lives…"

She laughed. "Well, wow. This is huge."

The gym occupied the entire floor, a long narrow hallway surrounding all of the twenty rooms. There was a male and a female changing room, equipped with mini bathrooms and water machine, weight lifting room, running tracks room, space for gymnastics, martial arts, dance, even shooting (Mello liked it there quite a bit), and much more. The tour took them about half an hour, and now they were back at the start, Mello still carrying her black sports bag ("Be a gentleman, would you.") over his shoulder.

"So? Where do you want to start?"

"Changing room seems like a good choice." She grinned, grabbing her bag and walking away.

"Need directions?" Mello called after her. The only reply he got was shutting of the doors, and he guessed it was a 'no'. After a brief visit to the male changing room, where he changed his skin tight leather attire for a similar, more comfortable black sweatpants and a tee, he walked to the female room, waiting for Ari to come out. He had to wait for a minute before she walked out, dressed in black shorts, purple tank top and a pair of black socks.

"I'll be in the dance room." She said, turning right. Impressed by the velocity at which she memorised the area, he went to find an activity for himself.

It took him five minutes to settle for weightlifting, and by then, a soft beat of an unknown tune started to ring through the hallway. Surprisingly, he found himself to be okay with it, so he left the doors opened as he engaged in his usual exercise.

It was almost three p.m. when he decided to check on Ari- cameras were installed all over the area so it wasn't like he left her to commit a mass murder, but still. She was still in the dance room, lying on the floor, breathing heavy, covered in a thick layer of sweat. She noticed him at the doors and waved, gasping a 'hi'.

"Done already?" He asked, grinning.

"Shut up." She smiled, stretching out her hand towards him. He helped her to a sitting position and she shoved some hair out of her face. "I'm dying. Can we get something to eat?"

"Thought you can order anything you want."

"Yes, yes I can." Her grin grew wider. "Be nice and I might ask you to join me."

Fifteen minutes later they both ended up in her room, sitting on the floor and waiting for the enormous amount of food they ordered to arrive. He took a quick shower and his hair was still wet, and so was hers, but none of them seemed to mind the cool trail of water dripping down their backs.

"So, do you usually blow dry your hair or?" She asked, grinning. He rolled his eyes.

"No, but you should give it a try."

"Flat iron, then?"

"No."

"Aw, come on, you can tell me." She bit on her thumb nail. "I promise not to laugh."

"You already are laughing."

"Fine, then, I promise to stop."

"No."

"No?"

"I don't do anything to my hair."

"Oh." She gave it a bit of thought. "Guess you're naturally pretty."

"Pretty?"

"Yeah, but in a butch, macho way."

A soft knock on the door interrupted his comeback, but the idea of getting food made him forget about it completely. He accepted the tray and thanked the lady, placing it on the floor between them.

"Come to mommy." Ari smiled, unwrapping her chicken sandwich. He went for his burger, washing it down with a cold coke and a chocolate bar. Ari rolled her eyes at the sight of the familiar snack, but said nothing, nibbling on her lunch instead. Once done, Mello spread himself over the soft carpet, sighing happily.

"Well, I don't know how their private lives were, but at least the food is good." Ari noted, copying him. He chuckled.

"That's hardly Near's work."

"Well, he hired the staff."

"Well…" Mello searched for a comeback. "Well, yeah, I guess."

"That reminds me, what does he eat?"

"Only human souls."

"Sounds legit."

"Of course it does, when it's true."

Ari chuckled. "Can I hear the story of you and him now? You dined in my chambers, if this were the ancient times you'd have to marry me."

He rolled his eyes. "It's just some childhood rivalry, and him being a creepy cunt."

"Ow, that's kind of tough. And he can hear you."

"That's why I'm saying it."

Ari sighed. "So, little Near was better than little Mello-"

"You make it sound like you're talking about our-"

"That was intentional."

"Oh."

"_Anyways_, he was better than you at eating sand or something, and so you swore to hate him forever?"

"You make it sound so juvenile."

"Am I wrong?"

"Well, no, kind of." Mello sighed. "You forgot the creepy cunt part."

"There are many creepy cunts out there."

"But this one is better than me."

"Ooh, still is?"

He shot her a glare. "Don't go there."

"Is that a threat?" Her eyes sparkled. "No, no, no, _I'm _the scary one here, I'm the serial killer."

"Is that a confession?"

"Bite me."

Mello laughed. "So, miss the outside world yet?"

She sighed. "You have no idea how. I'd kill for a walk in the park-" She looked back at him. "_-not literally."_

"I wasn't going to say anything."

"Just making sure."

"Okay."

"And I miss my friends a bit." She shuffled at her spot. "Wish I could've attended my funeral. I bet people cried."

"You can ask Linder to confirm it, she was there."

"Ooh, right, that's a good idea." Ari nodded. "How about you? Are you allowed to go outside?"

"More or less, yeah." He yawned. "But Near prefers me to stay inside and watch over you."

"Oh, I'm sorry."

"You're not that bad."

"That's lovely." She suddenly sat up. "Lets go explore the building."

"Really? Now?"

"Yeah." She looked at him, face excited. "Come on, grandpa. The day is still young."

If Mello honestly thought I was 'not that bad' before, I made sure to change his opinion. He was obviously in his lazy mood, wanting to hang around and nap or something, and yet I forced him to go up and down the staircase about million times, exploring one fourth of the building (the thing was _huge_). I showed no mercy until ten p.m., when we ordered more food to my room, and then he excused himself ("I'll make you pay for this." "I'm sure of it, good night.") and I took a fast shower, crawling under my blankets and falling asleep in an instant. The day with Mello almost made the entire Kira thing slip off my mind for a few hours, but, fortunately for me, the blessed ignorance left shortly after he did. My peaceful sleep was violently interrupted around three a.m., with a bickering of two hoarse voices. I sat up in my bed, eyeing the darkness, knowing better than to speak up.

"Ari?" Havoc realised I was awake first. "Did we wake you up?"

_What does it look like? _

"Oh right. Well, this is…"

"Kira." The unfamiliar voice interrupted, and my entire body tensed. Slowly, emerging from the darkened corner, a tall floating figure appeared, dressed in a blood soaked suit, decomposing skin hanging on the drained flesh, lump reddish hair covering most of the once appealing face. His- _it's_- eyes were bright red, lips curled into a smile, long bony fingers twitching excitedly. He let out a low chuckle.

"Miss Linder." He whispered as the realisation dawned in on my still half-asleep brain. "Pleasure to meet you again."

***A/N* Chapter, y u so short and sucky? Please review and tell me how to improve, I'm obviously doing a bad job doing it myself. Also, the school started and is slowly killing me, but I'll try to update once a week anyways. Big big thanks to everyone who followed/favourited, eternal love to the ones who actually reviewed, love you all! –BBT**


	14. Chapter 13

It was a wave of nausea that broke through the shock-induced trance, and I launched out of the bed as fast as I could manage, barely making it to the toilet before the contains of my stomach burst out through my mouth, my breathing heavy, shirt sticking to my sweat-soaked back.

"Charming."

Still shaking slightly, I wiped the puke off my lips and looked up, pushing back the sarcastic remark, still unsure my stomach would handle it.

"This is a blind spot."

"She knows." Havoc snarled at him, and I felt considerably calmer- I had Havoc, and Havoc was as powerful as Yagami.

_Yagami._

_Oh God._

I felt the bile rising in my stomach and leaned over the toilet seat again, pure, colourless liquid the only thing leaving my throat. A single sob escaped my lips, and I pushed the rest back. No time for emotional breakdowns, not now.

"Arianna Linder." There was an icy finger on the small of my neck, and I flinched away. Havoc snarled again, and Light Yagami laughed.

"Almost more entertaining than the first time." He noted, not removing his rotting hand from my back. "I could keep doing this forever."

"But he won't." Havoc said. I stared up at Yagami, refusing to cower in fear.

"How?" I dared to ask, and Light grinned, revealing a set of blackened teeth.

"Turns out the Shinigami king grew fond of me." He tipped his head to the side. I fought back a shiver.

It was Light Yagami. Oh god, _it was Light Yagami. _

I had assumed Kira was a human being that won over a Shinigami. Never has it occurred to me that it could be a Shinigami that won over a human.

And not just any Shinigami.

"Not fair." I breathed.

"The Shinigami king is _not _fond of him." Havoc said, disdain radiating off his body. "The Shinigami realm has grown bored, and decided to turn to their latest idea of entertainment-"

_Turning Kira into a god of death and unleashing him on the land of the living. _Another sob escaped my lips. I pushed my face into my forearm, stifling any further noises.

"He is not allowed to use a Death Note." Havoc went on. I looked up at that, and Yagami- _no, Kira, Light Yagami was a victim of the note, this was the force that drove him mad, this was Kira, this is Kira- _rolled his eyes.

"I have been given one."

"Using it will kill him."

"I don't need to use it."  
>"What is going on?" I murmured.<p>

"Light Yagami was quite a sensation, both on the Earth and up there." Havoc stated. "Shinigami realm grew bored in his absence, and decided to stage a little game."

"So I became a god."

"He was given a notebook and released from the Nothingness," Havoc's voice was acid. "But he is definitely _not _a Shinigami."

"Yet." Kira grinned, looking down at me. "I am on my trial period."

"He was given a task, and if he manages to fulfil it without breaking any rules, he becomes a full-on Shinigami."

"Are they not aware he will use the notebook to become Kira once again?" I whispered, flushing the water. "Do they just want to see Near squirm, trying to figure it out?"

"Well, actually-" Havoc started, but Light cut him off.

"Near will not be here to witness my reign."

"Oh?" I asked, placing the toilet lid down and perching on top of it, knees drawn to my chest.

"Near is the golden ticket." Havoc explained. "He needs to-"

"Kill Near?" I smirked. "He needs to kill Near without using the note."

Light seemed slightly impressed. "Correct."

"Told you." Havoc growled. "She is smarter than you."

"She is hardly as smart as me." Light frowned, rotting flesh stretching over his protruding bones. "Smart, but nowhere near enough."

"So, tell me." I asked, leaning back. "How do you intend to do that?" My voice was perfectly careless, and I felt a tiny spark of pride. "Or am I not allowed to know?"

"Oh, I'll let you figure it out." Light grinned, before disappearing. Havoc gave me a worried look, before disappearing himself. I supposed it was some sort of contract between the two of them- Light Yagami had made my Shinigami his bitch, and I was not overly pleased with that.

"Shit."

**********ohhi***********

I woke up to the clatter on my night-stand and, cracking one eye open with a frown, startled a room-service lady, mask on her face. She jumped back, and then muttered a nervous apology, fixed the tray on my nightstand and retreated. With a sigh, I sat up, and studied the brought goods.

A cup of black tea, still hot, some crackers, and a single note, written in neat, very not-boyish handwriting- _if your nausea continues we will bring in a professional. _A smile made its' way to my lips as I pushed myself out of the bed, to the shower, stalling the whole 'Light Yagami is next to immortal and you have to do something about it' process for a couple of minutes.

As the lukewarm water splashed down my shoulders, my brain finally caught up with my body, and I started blindly tapping through the haze enveloping the events of the mysterious Thursday night, knowing how crucial they must be.

If I could remember the name of the person assisting Light Yagami- Havoc said Light could not use the notebook, so somebody else had to be, and with all those Kira supporters it wouldn't be hard for him to find a volunteer- I could push Near into their general direction, and maybe they'd confess- or I could just kill them and steal their notebook and then Near can kill me if he wishes and they can all believe I was Kira but at least the murder's would stop and even if Light did kill Near he wouldn't have a notebook to use-

He could win one gambling.

Banging my head against the tiled wall of the shower stall, I tried a different point of view.

I was showered and dressed a couple of minutes later, and then started to do my nails, just to buy myself some time.

Havoc and Light showed up fifteen minutes later, and I grinned, putting the nail polish away.

"You didn't tell me everything." I muttered, back on the toilet seat. Havoc smiled.

"Just killing Near will not be enough." Light answered the unvoiced question. "He needs to commit suicide."

"And what, exactly, is my part in your whole diabolical plan?" I asked. "You frame me, I get executed, killings go on, he was wrong, he goes insane?"

"That _was _my initial plan." Light nodded. "But it would take far too long."

"You have a time limit." I breathed out, and I knew my eyes must have been huge. There was a chance I was wrong- maybe he just didn't have the patience- but the way his rotting lips pressed together told me I've hit the gold mine.

"You'll die if you fail."

Lips pressed tighter. I grinned.

"How much longer?"

"Not of import-" "He has a year."

The Shinigami's shared a glare. I leaned back.

"So." I bit into my lip. "You don't have much time to drive Near suicidal."

"I don't _need_" Yagami's teeth gritted together. "Much time."

"No?"

Havoc suddenly looked very uneasy. My stomach clenched uncomfortably, but I kept a careless façade on.

"I'll share a little secret with you." Yagami leaned in closer. He smelled like- surprise, surprise- rotten flesh, and dried blood, and gunshot powder. I scowled.

"Something your mummified friend knew, but decided to keep it to himself." He went on. Havoc looked at me, apology and alarm mixing in his eyes.

"Near's real name."  
>"What am I to do with it?" I asked with a 'couldn't-care-less' shrug. The pungent smell of nervous sweat probably gave me away, though.<p>

"You're to figure this out." Light grinned. It truly wasn't a pretty sight. He leaned in closer, limp hair brushing my cheek, and whispered two words into my ear, before disappearing with a snicker.

I clenched the toilet seat. I was sick again. My heart, that threatened to jump out of my chest just a second ago, now almost stopped.

"Nate River." I breathed the name. Then my knuckles relaxed, and I passed out.

*********dontdodrugskids*********

Mello spent the day in the gym, feeling somewhat restless and very confused.

He didn't know what to think. Arianna was the number one suspect, and she did have a motive, and she did have the intelligence, and she was a fantastic liar- and he still found himself reluctant to believe she was Kira.

It was stupid. Light Yagami was charming too. Every mildly successful psychopath had the skill down. He was a Wammy's child, he was raised to do this, he wasn't about to let sentiment cloud his judgement-

_Because that had never ever happened before has it-_

He pressed his eyelids shut and gritted his teeth. He wasn't going to think about Matt now.

_This is why Near is L. _A part of his brain taunted. _He doesn't get people killed because of his childhood rivalries. He doesn't get his opinions clouded because he likes the suspect. _

He suddenly felt like shooting.

That was when the phone rang.

It was Halle- breathing shallow, voice panicked- telling him that Arianna had passed out and to come to the floor seven _right now_. He moved without a second thought.

Seventh floor was equipped like a smaller clinic, nothing too flashy, just a place where they could get emergency procedures done, with a small surgery room and a couple of beds. Arianna was lying on one of them, an IV stuck in her arm, face pallid. Halle was holding her hand, and Decker kept guard.

"What happened?" He asked, approaching. Halle looked up.

"She passed out in the bathroom." She muttered. "She threw up last night, and again today. She almost choked on her own saliva. She'll be on IV until we can be sure she can stomach proper food. She should wake up soon."

He breathed out a sigh of relief. "Good."

"Near wants to talk to you." She gently removed a strand of hair from Arianna's face. The movement was awkward, forced, and he found himself thinking back on Arianna's words- _Not love. Guilt._- and accepted that she was right. "You know the floor."

He gave her a curt nod before leaving.

*********wammy*********

Near's back were turned to him- _unexpected, truly- _and he never acknowledged Mello's entrance. Mello felt almost obliged to knock one of the domino towers down- Near wouldn't shoot him at this point of the investigation, right?

_Matt's last words were 'you won't shoot'- _

He scowled. Near, of course, noticed.

"Is something bothering Mello?"

The blonde scowled. "What do you want?"

"Arianna has fainted." Near stated, focused on his growing domino empire.

"So I've heard."  
>"She will be alright, but was it not for Halle coming in to check up on her, she would have died." Near continued, voice flat. "She needs to be placed under constant watch."<p>

"Installing camera in her shower must be against some law." Mello noted, not expecting Near to be bothered by it- for God's sake, he was the law.

"Halle would not hear of it." Mello stared. He didn't expect Near to acknowledge him yet. "And despite what everyone seems to believe, I was not about to follow through _that _plan." There was a hint of disdain in his voice, as if he was above something so _obvious_.

Mello fought to keep his temper down. "Near?"

"Yes?"

"Tell me the plan now, or I swear, I'll burn your dominos down-"

"They are inflammable."

Mello sucked in a deep breath.

"Unlike you."

_Oh, this is just asking for it._

Not giving Mello a chance to choose to ignore the sure consequences and reach for the gun, Near went on.

"As from this day on, you will be her roommate."

Mello did not see him coming. He frowned.

"What?"

"Has Mello damaged his hearing?" Near's voice was perfectly innocent. "I had a room specially equipped for the two of you. You will find it respects your privacy as well as it was possible."

"You are moving us in together?"

"Mello sounds outraged." Near was still building the damn tower.

"Some would consider your request perverse."

"Some are allowed to have their opinions." Near was unfazed. Mello wasn't sure what he had expected. "However, those do not affect my decision in the slightest."

"Will there be cameras?"

"Of course." Near replied. "Purely for safety purposes, of course. Leaving her unwatched might put your life in jeopardy."  
>"How thoughtful."<p>

"Mello's voice is laced with sarcasm."

"You fucking think."

"No need for swear words." Near's voice was patronising. Mello gritted his teeth. "Decker and Gevanni will accompany you to your new bedchambers. You will find it already equipped with both of your possessions."  
>"You-" Mello took in a deep breath. "You didn't come up with this today."<br>There was a moment of silence. "It was a precaution."

"Precaution my ass."  
>"Mind the language, please." Near sighed, fingers reaching for the white curls. "Was it not for the bond you two seem to have formed, I would never have made a step this bold."<br>"You?" Mello snarled. "It seems to me I'm doing all the stepping."  
>"You are doing a great deal of stepping, indeed." Near nodded. "You are free to go."<p>

Mello knocked a tower down on his way out. _A great deal of stepping indeed._

********cryingovermatt******

She was still unconscious as they brought her into the room, and Mello growled into the pillow. The room- well, more of an apartment, really, with a small kitchen and two bathrooms- _was_ spacey, and their beds had thick, velvet curtains that could block all the unwanted contact when pushed down. The aforementioned beds were good fourteen feet apart from each other, and between them there stood a chess-board, a sofa, and a large plasma TV that _almost _made Mello okay with an arrangement.

_Almost._

"Couldn't you at least wait until she was awake?" Mello asked, glancing up at Gevanni. The older man shrugged.

"Near's orders."

He growled again.

Gevanni looked almost sympathetic as he helped the nurses roll Ari over from the stretcher and onto her bed. She yawned, and they all stepped back.

"Good luck." One of the nurse's whispered as they left the room. Mello thanked her. He was going to need a lot of luck.

She woke up fifteen minutes later- fifteen minutes of awkward don't-stare-don't-stare-away fidgeting- and bolted upright with panic in her eyes.

"Calm down!" Mello was on his feet before she had a chance to scream. "It's me."

She took in a deep breath, and nodded.

"Near decided that this was safer." He went on, not bothering to contain the disdain in his voice. Ari relaxed.

"Even though I'm possibly Kira?"

"Even though you're possibly Kira."

She reached for the back of her head and frowned in pain. "What-"

"You passed out." He replied, watching her warily. Her eyes widened for a second before being replaced with a look of faked confusion. He almost frowned.

"Oh."

"Remember anything?"

"Not much."

"Want some food?"

She shook her head.

"Thought so."

"So, we're roommates now?" She asked, looking around the room. He nodded.

"Sweet."

"Yeah."

"I hope you're not a snorer."

He snorted. "You might be happy to know there are no cameras in the bathrooms."

She did seem happy. "Sweet." Then her eyes narrowed. "Bathrooms? Multiple bathrooms?"

"Near felt very charitable." He bit back a remark. She nodded.

"We allowed to leave this place?"  
>"Only in pairs." He rolled his eyes. "Like good little children."<p>

She jumped off her bed. "Lets go, then."

He frowned, taking in her appearance. "You sure?"

"Fresh air is the best medicine…"

He rolled his eyes. "I thought it was laughter."

"I'm sure you can come up with a couple of jokes on our way up." She walked over to his side and pulled at his forearm. "Come on."

*********stillcryingovermatt*********

We went to sleep early- well, neither of us really fell asleep, but we were in our respective beds, and we had the curtains down, and we were both quiet, so pretending to be asleep wasn't exactly hard.

Havoc was at my side, and as from late, that meant Light too- but Havoc did the talking, while Light just watched over him, so pretending he wasn't there wasn't hard either.

"It's going to be okay." Havoc assured me.  
>"It's not." Light spoke up. I gritted my teeth.<p>

"Do not speak to her when she can't reply." Havoc's voice was cold. Light snickered.

"You would die for her, wouldn't you?" He teased. "It killed Rem."

"You killed Rem."

"I could kill you, too."

With a frown, I sat up, and headed for the bathroom. Mello dutifully kept silent.

Turning on the water, I looked up to meet my reflection- I was still a bit pale, but then again, I always was- and then switched over to Light's snickering form.

"Sayu Yagami."

That stopped his snickering, alright.

"Excuse me?"

"I saw her face." I went on in hushed whisper. "I know her name, I know her face."

Light was silent. Havoc looked proud.

"So rethink your plan, would you?" I stopped the water running and went for the doorknob.

"You can't kill her if you're dead."

"I can." Havoc spoke up. I grinned.

"She doesn't mean anything to me."

"Sure." I opened the doors. Mello was sat upright, hair messy, and his eyes followed me as I climbed into my bed.

Exhaustion washed over me before my head even hit the pillow, and I fell asleep instantly. I dreamt of Mello's scar, Light's death, Havoc's reassuring touches, and of the black haired Nate River that memorised Pi by heart.

***A/N* HI**

**REMEMBER ME**

**I WAS HERE**

**THEN I WAS NOT**

**BUT NOW I AM**

**wootwoot**

**I really hope people still feel like reading this. Because, damn, I feel like writing it.**

**(I did not give up on my superwho(avenge/hobbit)locks, worry not. I just have a lot of Death Note feels. So. Yeah. I'm a multifandom bitch. **

**Please review? Pretty please? I'll get you into the damn room so you can sex Mello up because I know that's what all of your little perverted minds want. **


	15. Chapter 14

The thing about rock bottom-there is a thing about rock bottom, yes- is that it never quite _is _the bottom. Through life, I've come to the realisation that things can always get worse- and the heartless bitch was not quite done with me yet.

I was a Kira suspect. I was a Kira suspect being framed by the actual Kira- now immortal- and had zero chance of clearing my name. I was also to be used as emotional black mail- but that was a subject for a whole different me to ponder on. I was a Kira suspect, I was officially dead, about to become truly and completely dead quite soon, and I figured out- well, it doesn't get much worse from there, does it?

It does.

Oh, it does.

I was prepared for a lot of things. I was prepared for Mello to walk up to me and shoot me on the spot- _Near has gathered evidence, I am sorry- _I was prepared for a public execution, I was prepared for thorough questioning, mental and possibly physical torture, I was even starting to mentally brace myself up for the fact that Havoc might do something stupid _and die-_

And those things were all very, very bad. So you can't blame me for not seeing the actual bad wolf coming.

Mello and I had breakfast downstairs- there was something captivating about the unease I caused in the staff- and that was when his thin black cell phone rang, and he answered with a scowl that told me Near was the caller.

"We need to go up." He told me once he hung up. I chewed on my toast.

"Did he say why?"

Mello made a face. "He rarely gives reasons."

I accepted the information and downed the rest of my coffee, pushing the half-emptied plate away. The elevator ride was mostly quiet, both of us still a bit sleepy and more than a bit interested in whatever Near had to say- the power he held in his hair-twirling fingers was more than intimidating.

He had switched to card towers today, and already had a pretty realistic copy of Versailles going on around him. Halle stood in the far corner, chewing on the lip, and barely acknowledged our entrance. The atmosphere was suffocating. Fear shot through my veins, together with an unexpected tinge of relief- _if he kills me now it will all be over. _

Mello coughed, announcing our presence. Near stopped the building, hand lingering mid-air.

"I would appreciate it if Mello restrained from knocking down my newest creation." Was all he said. "This particular building survived the French revolution. It'd be most unfortunate if it was to suffer destruction because of a jealously-induced tantrum."

I glanced over to Mello. He was biting his lip, obviously barely holding back.

"You called us?" Was my attempt at defusing the tension. To my left, Halle awkwardly cleared her throat.

"He called you on my behalf." She stated, not meeting my eyes. "It has nothing to do with the Kira investigation."

"Oh." There it was again, relief and weariness, both at once. I tilted my head to the side, in a gesture I hoped conveyed interest.

"My brother…" She took in a deep breath. "He got released for good behaviour today."

My heart stopped. I might have staggered back, because suddenly, Mello's hands were on my shoulders, partially for comfort, partially to keep me on my feet.

"He called me about your death, and I've told him-" I could feel my breathing increasing, and Halle's eyes grew panicked as she kept on forcing the words out. "I had to tell him you're alive, he's your _father-"_

"_He's not!_" The voice that came out of my mouth was high pitched, bordering with pure hysteria. Mello's grip of my shoulder's tightened.

Halle looked utterly scared now. "He'll be here. Today." She looked away. "He wants to apologise, he-"

I couldn't manage more than a whisper. "No."

"I'll go talk to him. Maybe you-"

"No." This time I was louder, and Halle pressed her mouth tightly shut. I removed myself from Mello's grip, wrapping my shivering arms around my equally shivering torso.

"I don't want to see him." I said, retreating for the doors. "Tell him I fell down the stairs, or something."

*****oOo*****

Mello watched Arianna rush out of the room before switching his glare to Halle.

"Go after her."

She looked at him, eyes almost begging.

"Agent Linder, please do as you're told." Near commanded from his place, and with a shuddering breath, Halle obeyed. Mello waited for the doors to close before turning to Near.

"He pushed her adoptive mother down the stairs?"

"Yes." Near carefully placed another card on his creation.

"Drunk?"

"No."

Mello pondered on it for a second. He remembered Arianna's hitched breathing, tense shoulders, the protective gesture of wrapping herself up in her arms, and the explanation screamed at his face.

"What was his motive?"

"Arianna was the sole witness." Near went on. "She couldn't offer a reason. Linder pled momentary insanity."

"They believed him?"

"He was sentenced in America." Was Near's explanation. Mello supposed it did explain a lot.

"Arianna wouldn't speak, then?" He knew Near was coming up with the same scenario as he did. He could see the younger boy's- man's?-shoulders tense under the oversized shirt.

"Please, do make sure he fails to make any contact with Arianna Linder." He said, focused on his tower. "I will make sure he leaves for America before sunset."

A small smile crept onto Mello's lips. He didn't even care if it was Near. "Later."

Near didn't look at him. "Later."

******oOo******

We spent the day in my room, watching crap telly.

Mello asked to take lunch in the room, continually pointed out plot-holes in the horrible quality soap operas, and kept healthy distance for the length of the day, and it didn't take me long to figure out he was onto something.

We were just watching a slow-motion footage of a long anticipated kiss when I decided I could take it no more. Turning the TV off, I turned around to face him. His mouth were open in protest, but he quickly closed them, noticing my facial expression.

"You know."

It wasn't a question, but he still nodded, reluctantly, eyes worried and soaked in the disgusting pity. I scowled.

"How?"

"It _is_ my job to read people."

I nodded, biting into my lower lip. "So Near knows too?"

He looked horribly awkward. "Yes."

I sighed. "Well."

"He'll get him shipped away to America." He went on, eyes locked on me. "And if you were to lay charges-"

"I won't."

He paused, studying my face. "May I ask why?"

I pushed back a sarcastic remark. "I have my reasons."

"He can't hurt anyone if he's in jail."

I glared at him, and he gulped, and the knowledge that I could still scare _someone _was oddly reassuring. "Don't. Guilt. Trip me."

He looked down at his knees. "I'm sorry."

"If he gets arrested, everyone will know."

"That's-"

"Yesterday, you looked at me like I was your equal." I could hear my voice breaking, and grinded my teeth in frustration. "Now it's just pity and-" A sob broke through my sentence, and Mello almost grabbed my shoulder again, holding back at the last second. "I can't have people know, okay?"

Mello's eyes were flooded with so many emotions I could not read any of them. "Okay."

I didn't know what to say, so I just focused on evening out my breathing.

"I'll talk to Near." He added after a moment. "We'll get him locked away for something. Drug abuse. Questioning. Doesn't matter." He moved forward, just a bit, and smiled. "He'll never hurt anyone else."

I nodded, smiling back. "Thank you."

His smile grew. "Just doing my job."

*****oOo*****

"You could kill him."

It was Light. I frowned at him- Mello was silent for over fifteen minutes now, but I was not about to risk everything and reply.

"You know you want him dead."

"No." I mouthed. He frowned. His left eyelid had rotted away, and now I could witness every little movement of his eyeball. The red irises focused on me.

"Why?"

I shoved my face into the pillow, hoping he'd go away.

"He deserves worse than death." Havoc explained, voice called. Light chuckled.

"Life is rarely worse than death."

"It's not for me to decide." I whispered. I really hoped Mello was asleep.

"So you'd rather have him out there?" Light's corpse pouted. "Come on. You could make him do anything. You could make him cut off his own leg and choke on it. You could make him set himself on fire. You could make someone chop him to pieces, still awake."

"Creative." Havoc's voice was unimpressed.

"It's tempting, isn't it?"

I sat up in my bed, and met Light's eyes with all ferocity I could muster.

"Kindly shove your misguided logic up your un-dead vigilante butt hole." I hissed. He rose an eyebrow. Mello turned over in his- thank god- sleep.

"Good night." I smiled at him, before falling back to the bed and turning to my side. I fell asleep immediately.

*****ijustwanttowritenearandmello*****

I woke up with a scream perched on my lips, threatening to overspill any second, and I quickly swallowed it back, its' taste bitter and nauseating. Strands of hair were sticking to my sweat-covered neck and forehead, shirt glued to my back. Breathing heavy, I stormed out of the room, into the bathroom, stepping into the shower fully clothed.

Water was icy cold and my back screamed in displeasure, but I made no move to turn it off, because my bed wasn't cold and my bed didn't hurt and beds and I just didn't get along.

Finally, my natural urge to not freeze to death took over and I stepped out, shoving the dripping strands of hair out of my eyes, gasping at the uncomfortable coolness. The oversized tee and a pair of boyish shorts were clinging to my skin, and I fumbled with them for a second before peeling it all off, fabric thick with water. Near equipped our bathrooms with fluffy bathrobes, and in that moment I felt very grateful, wrapping one around my shivering body and exiting the room.

Mello was awake, sitting upright, sleep-tousled hair making him look like a discontent dandelion. I bit into my lip to stop myself from laughing.

"Morning."

"Morning." He yawned, climbing out of the bed. "Took a shower?"

"Could say so."

He went for the bathroom and I took the chance to put on some clean clothes, and was just in the process of untangling my wet hair when someone knocked on the doors.

I gave the wooden surface a suspicious glance. My only contacts here were Mello- who was currently in the bathroom- and Near, who'd just use a phone. Deciding it must be Halle, wanting to smooth over the yesterday's situation, I placed the comb away and went for the doors.

It was Halle. She offered me a shy smile.

"Good morning." I returned her smile. She had enough on her plate as it was, and I knew she just wanted to re-establish our previous slightly shallow but perfectly functional aunt-niece bond. She breathed a sigh of relief.

"I am sorry for yesterday." She mumbled. "I understand your actions completely."

"And I understand yours." I shrugged. "He is your brother."

"He's not a very good person."

"He was probably a good brother."  
>She looked down, obviously uncomfortable.<p>

"Don't let me hold you back, I'm sure Near needs your assistance." I forced a laugh. "See you around."

Her smile was half relief and half gratefulness. She squeezed my shoulder. "See you."

I waited for Mello to get ready- he doesn't do his hair, my ass- and then asked if we could go down for breakfast.

"He's gone, isn't he?" I added, already half-way out of the doors, and Mello followed, muttering obscene swear words under his breath. I wasn't sure why exactly I decided to take the stairs- I took too much pleasure in seeing Mello groan at the forced physical activity- and was just about to bribe him with promises of chocolate pastries when his phone rang.

He frowned, pushing a hand into his _incredibly tight _back pocket and producing the aforementioned device. He frowned again.

"I don't know the number."

"Old friend?"

He frowned again. "I hope not."

"Give it to me." I took the phone from him, climbing to my toes and balancing on the top stair. I could probably get myself a nice concussion was I to fall, but year of contemporary dancing made me confident in my abilities.

I answered the phone with unnecessary dramatics and straightened my posture.

"How can I help you?" I asked, voice as perky as I could manage. There was no reply. I scowled.

"Excuse me, sir?"

"Is this Mello's phone?"

My façade slipped. I recognised that voice.

"Who's that?"

More silence. "Ari?"

I could feel my blood run cold. "She's not here."

Mello gave me a worried look.

"Arianna." There was a fondness in _his _voice, a tinge of longing, and I felt my stomach turn over. I had just enough time to shove the cell into Mello's ready hands before leaning over and throwing up. There was a weird raking sensation in my throat, and I could hear Mello shouting something into the phone, and my fingers were covered in thick, sticky liquid, and I opened my eyes, and then it clicked, and I tried to scream but the dizziness took over.

I fell, rather ungracefully, down the stairs, and the last thing I could remember was protruding pain in my left temple, and then everything went black.

***A/N* I just want to write Mello and Near scenes and somehow I can't argh. **

**I'm starting on the new chapter NOW. It's almost midnight. NOW. **

**I really hope you like my OC because I'm giving you an awful lot of her. But I really love Havoc and I don't know. Shinigami Light is amusing. (I'm a ginihsss)**

**Also, can you imagine reverse Nazism?**

**I really need coffee. AND REVIEWS PLEASE REVIEW**

**I have 69 favourite stories awyiss (is secretly five)**

**Oh oh and do listen to the song 'white rabbit heart' by a lovely youtuber theawkwardpufferfish. It reminds me of Near for some reason. **


	16. Chapter 15

Near's eyes were unfocused, skin even more pallid than it usually was. He was sat on a plastic chair, leaning back, the heavy, dark eyes were focused on the ceiling as he muttered the decimals of number Pi under his breath. His white sleeve was rolled up, a gauze pressed to the bleeding spot.

Halle had gone to get some food, and Gevanni lingered behind, worry in his eyes. The whole scene was helplessly tragic. Mello fought back the impulse to laugh.

Mello's first thought was to take Ari to the hospital, but Near insisted she be taken to the headquarters ambulance. Mello felt a strong urge to shove him down the stairs.

"Did you see the blood?"

Near's eyes trailed over the red pool sipping down the stairs. He met Mello's gaze again.

"Yes."

_Oh God_ he was going to shove him. "She needs a blood transfusion."

"She will get it." Near made a move to go.

"I know how much blood you have stocked up here, it won't be enough-"

Near cut him off with a wave of his hand. "I'll donate."

That stopped him, alright.

"You?"

Near looked slightly annoyed. "And I would like to do so now. It seemed like an emergency."

"You have the same blood type?"

"Obviously."

Turns out, Arianna had lost a lot of blood. Violent nauseous episodes got her ***** badly damaged, and the fall gave her a smaller concussion and a severe bleeding. Near readily offered his forearm, and the medical team he had appointed quickly worked their magic. Near ordered them to take as much blood as necessary, and was now hardly able to walk, so Mello helped him onto a chair, and ordered Halle to bring him some fuel.

Near's muttering has finally stopped, and he looked up at Mello.

"I can't remember the next one."  
>"Does it matter?" Mello asked. He could recite Pi to a certain point, but Near had long surpassed him.<p>

_Typical, huh._

"No." Near blinked. "I suppose it doesn't."

It was then that Halle returned, a platter filled with rich, sugar-filled food placed in front of Near. He regarded it with a sigh, but agreed to eat it anyways.

Mello took a seat himself.

"You knew her blood type?"

"I did a basic background check." Near studied a Snickers bar with disdain.

"Blood type is basic background check?" Mello studied the boy with equal disdain. It seemed a bit trivial to him, but then again, it _was_ Near.

"It came up, and I merely remembered it." Near sounded mildly agitated. "Seeing as it is the same as mine."

"Yeah, about that." Mello watched Halle and Gevanni walk around the corner, talking in hushed voices, and decided to go for it. "She's British too, right?"

Near met his eyes for a second. "Too?"

Mello realised he wasn't supposed to know this. "Halle told me."

Near nodded.

"Eat that." Mello gestured towards the plate. With a sigh, Near placed another chocolate cube into his mouth.

"You better eat it all." He added.

"Mello is acting unusually protective today." Near noted, his mouth full. It made him sound much younger than he was, almost as young as he looked.

Where are the stairs when you need them. "Mello also has a gun."

With a resigned eye roll, Near reached under his shirt, and pulled out a smaller gun- small, but undoubtedly real. Mello was a bit taken aback.

"Is the sight of my gun so intimidating?"

Mello wouldn't put it past Near to not notice the sexual innuendo. With a loud screech, he got up to leave.

****whosegunisbigger****

He had to find the file.

He knew this was an outstretched shot. He knew it wasn't his job to pry.

He couldn't help himself.

The file was where it was supposed to be, and luckily, Mello obtained access to it the first day he moved in here- thank God for Matt and his lock-picking lessons.

It was particularly thick, and Mello was not surprised. Arianna did change her legal guardians multiple times, and it took a lot of paperwork.

What he was after was her birth certificate. He found it after a couple of minutes, a wrinkled, badly-kept old thing- last name covered in thick, black marker.

Putting it all back to its place, he moved on to find a doctor.

****nearhaslongfingersyouknow****

The woman in charge of Near's medical support team was smart but gullible, and seemed to have a soft spot for Mello's scarred face. She answered all of his questions, and if she noticed any ulterior motives, she did not call him out on it.

"Did Near already ask for the DNA test?" He asked over his shoulder, paying for her coffee. She accepted it gratefully.  
>"Oh, yes, almost a week ago." She leaned in, eyes curious. "That's her, isn't it?"<p>

Mello hesitated for a second before nodding. Near had trust in her, and it wasn't like Near to trust wrong people. "So, they were positive?"

"They're related, without a doubt." She sighed, leaning back. "He doesn't want her to know, though."

"No." Mello smiled softly. Information was racing through his brain. "He'll tell her herself, when he feels ready- now, excuse me."

He moved past her without a second glance, lost in his thought.

This was very inconvenient.

****fingerscanbeusedtodetermine****

Near was where he had left him, already looking healthier, although the plate in front of him was still half full. Mello decided to let it go- the worst thing that could happen was Near becoming incapable to do his duty, and Wammy's was always full.

"Mello could have simply asked to see the file." The boy noted, not looking up from his plate. His fruit salad was now somehow stocked up in the shape of the Eiffel tower. Mello was reluctantly impressed.

"Her last name is blacked out."

"Indeed." Near's hand was in his hair again.

"Because it's the same as yours."

Near's fingers kept twirling. He didn't reply.

"She told me she had a brother, a couple years older than her." Mello pushed on. "You are, what, twenty-one?"

Still no reply. All the confirmation he needed.

"So it is you."

Near's hand tugged at the lock, and he averted his eyes downwards.

"It would be greatly appreciated if you kept that information for yourself." He finally said, voice quiet. "If she were to make the connection, my life would be placed in great jeopardy."

Mello stared at him for a bit.

"If she turns out to be Kira-"

"Is Mello insinuating I might lose the objective approach?" Near was focused on his building material once again. When Mello didn't reply, he sighed. "I knew Arianna for four years, and for the most of it, she was an infant. It was seventeen years ago. The mere fact that we share a blood line will not affect my judgement in the slightest."

Mello kept on staring, lips pressed tightly together.

"Mello does not have to trust me." Near muttered after a while, voice reeking of indifference. "If he feels this new information would affect his way of seeing the case, he is free to leave."

"I'm staying." Was all he said before turning on his heel. "Good day, Near."

****thesizeofmalegenitalia****

I woke up with a headache- what a mind blowing change it was- and groaned as I rolled to the side, forcing my eyes open.

I was in a small, hospital-like room, and that was all I managed to determine before passing out.

Next time I awoke, I was less dizzy, and I actually managed to sit up and inspect my surroundings better. My throat ached, and a brief inspection of my scalp revealed a small stitch near my hair-line. Then the memories of the fall flooded my brain, and I leaned back, taking in deep breaths, nervous fingers tugging at my sheets.

Havoc and Light showed up in no time, and this time Light kept quiet, while Havoc talked.

"Your throat was raked raw and started bleeding, you threw up enough blood to feed a Russian Satanist, you then managed to gracefully tumble down the stairs and get yourself a bloody concussion, you fucking idiot-"

I groaned, rubbing at my temples, and he took the hint.

"We followed Mello today." He quickly changed the subject. "You've lost a lot of blood, and Near gave you his."

My eyes widened at that. Havoc hissed, and I took the hint, pulling on my second-best poker face (too drugged for the number one).

"He got curious, found your file, asked some people-" He glanced at me, worried. "Both Near and Mello know you are Near's sister."

Shit.

"I believe they are the only ones." Havoc went on. "You're not supposed to know."  
>Light snickered somewhere to my far left. I pressed my eyelids shut.<p>

"How about you stop leaving your room for the time being?" Havoc finally suggested. I managed a small, non-suspicious looking nod.

"Good." And then, both Shinigamis were gone.

***A/N* I suck and my head seriously hurts and I don't even know what is this story thank you my lovely birds**


End file.
